CIHM 

Microfiche 

Series 

(l\/lonographs) 


ICIMH 

Collection  de 
microfiches 
(monographies) 


Canadian  'nstitute  for  Historical  Mlcroreproductions  /  Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


1997 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes  /  Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 


The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best  original 
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□    Covers  restored  and/or  laminated  / 
Couverture  restaurde  et/ou  pelliculee 

I I   Cover  title  missing  /  Le  titr   de  couverture  manque 

I   Coloured  maps  /  Cartes  geographiques  en  couleur 

0   Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)  / 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 

I      I    Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations  / 


Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 

Bound  with  other  material  / 
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n 


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Only  edition  available  / 
Seule  Edition  disponible 

Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion  along 
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D 
D 


D 


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Ce  document  est  filmi  au  taux  de  reduction  indlqui  ci-dessous. 


lOx 

14x 

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22x 

26x 

30x 

J 

12x 

16x 

20x 

24x 

28x 

32x 

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or  illustrated  impression. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  —^(meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  V  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 

Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
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beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


L'exemplaire  film*  fut  reproduit  grice  A  la 
ginirositi  de: 

Harold  Campbell  Vaughan  Memorial  Library 
Acadia  University 

Les  images  suivantes  ont  6t6  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  et 
de  la  nettetd  de  l'exemplaire  filmi,  et  en 
conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 

Les  exemplaires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprimie  sont  filmds  en  commen^ant 
par  te  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
dernidre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration,  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  selon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  filmds  en  commenpant  par  la 
premiere  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  dernidre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparattra  sur  la 
dernidre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbole  — ♦-  signifie  "A  SUIVRE",  le 
symbole  V  signifie  "FIN". 

Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  6tre 
filmis  d  des  taux  de  reduction  diffirents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  dtre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  clich6,  il  est  film6  d  partir 
de  Tangle  supdrieur  gauche,  de  gauche  k  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  ndcessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  m6thode. 


1 

2 

3 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

MICROCOPY    RESOLUTION    TEST   CHART 

(ANSI  and  ISO  TEST  CHART  No.  2) 


1.0 


I.I 


1.25 


ISO 


2.8 


1^  m 

163 


4.0 


1.4 


III 


2.5 


2.2 

12.0 

1.8 
1.6 


^  APPLIED  IIVMGE     Inc 

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SSS  (716)   482  -  OJOO  -  Phone 

^=  (716)    288  -  5989  -  fox 


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THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS 

OF 

THE  LORD'S  PRAYER 


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THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS 

OF 

THE  LORD'S  PRAYER 


By  PERRY  J.  STACKHOUSE 

PASTOR  TABERNACLE  BAPTIST  CHURCH 
L'TICA,  NEW  YORK 


THE  GRIFFITH  AND  ROWLAND  PRESS 

PHILADELPHU 

cmJxrn  ^        ^'^-  ^^^^ 

CHICAGO  TORONTO,  CAN. 


«s 


W'^.'^-PfiW^^: 


Copyright  1916  by 
A.  J.  ROWLAND,  Secretary 

Published  June,  1916 


Vli^^ihi^A?. 


THE  ONE  HUNDRED  AND  FIFTY  MEMBERS 

of  the 

MEN'S  BIBLE  AND  SOCIAL  CLASS 

of  the 

FIRST  BAPTIST  CHURCH,   AMHERST,    NOVA  SCOTIA 

In  Memory  of  Five  Delightful  Years  of  Fellowship 
and  with  Vivid  Recollections  of  our  Sunday-after- 
noon  Sessions  Where  I  Learned  that  Social  and 
Economic  Problems  can  be  Discussed  with  the  Ut- 
most  Frankness  by  Men  Representing  all  Classes  in 
Society  and  Many  Economic  Creeds  in  a  Spirit  of 
Christian  Brotherhood  and  with  Great  Profit  to  All 
THIS  BOOK 

IS  AFFECTIONATELY  DEDICATED 


2 


19^:2.1 


m^^iaiseHm»!T, 


n 
i 


CONTENTS 

Ckaptbr 

Pagb 

Introduction  

I.  The  Historical  Foundations  of  the 

SocL\L  Ideals  of  Jesus  5 

II.  The  Social  Ideal  of  Divine  Father- 
hood       jg 

III.  The  Social  Ideal  of  Sonship 28 

IV.  The  Social  Ideal  of  Brotherhood  . .     40 
V.  The  Ideal  Social  AND  Religious  Order    53 

VI.  The  Ideal  of  the  Kingdom 67 

VII.  The  Kingdom  and  the  Principle  of 

Love   80 

VIII.  The  Kingdom  and  the  Principle  of 

Service    q2 

IX.  The  Kingdom  and  the  Principle  of 

Sa-TRIFICE jQ. 

X.  The  Cry  for  Bread i  jg 

XI.  The  Social  Ideal  of  Forgiveness 129 

XII.  Our  Social  Responsibility  142 

XTII.  The  World  Set  Free ic- 


Vo.- 


THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS 


OF 


THE  LORD'S  PRAYER 


! 


INTRODUCTION 

tertr,'  T  !r'  °"'^'^™''"g  P'-oblems  and  charac- 
narr^  1  '  """='""'  ''"'""y  ^"^  '"  *^  early 

the  mmd  and  the  conscience  of  European  nations 
From  the  m.ddle  of  the  seventeenth  cent"ry  down 

V  repom'arTo':,"";;'^'  *^  ^^^^'  "~™ 
«ere  political.    To-day,  the  paramount  and  pressing 

questions  are  social  and  economic,     I,  is  Z   'Z 

of  the  Social  Question.  ^' 

There  is  a  striking  unanimity  of  opinion  amonir 

all  who  write  on  economic  questions  from  the  eS 

nrcler  is  not  Qinstian.     The  coexistence  of  srreat 
wealth  and  great  poverty,  the  growing  spirit  of  Wt 
terness  between  capital  and  later  which  has  fLrd 
expression  in  the  United  States  during     1/""^ 
twenty  years  in  an  average  of  a  thousand  strike 


2  THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD's  PRAYER 

a  year,  the  alienation  of  so  many  wage-earners,  not 
only  from  the  church,  but  also  from  the  ideals  for 
which  the  church  stands,  are  facts  which  do  not 
make  for  optimism. 

On  the  other  hand,  a  very  significant  sign  of 
modern  times  is  the  awakening  of  the  church  to  the 
social  question.    Christian  men  in  increasing  num- 
bers are  beginning  to  see  that  the  social  problem 
IS  at  heart  a  moral  problem,  that  it  is  not  simply 
bread  and  butter,  shelter  and  clothing,  and  that 
even  wages  has  its  ethical  aspect.    We  are  recog- 
nizing that  most  of  the  greatest  evils  of  life  are 
rooted  in  economic  soil.    One  of  the  greatest  curses 
of  modern  civilization  is  the  drink  traffic.    No  one 
can  thoughtfully  study  that  subject  without  discover- 
ing  that  economic  causes  are  responsible  for  a  great 
deal  of  drinking.    Wages  are  in  many  cases  so  small 
that  the  wage-earners  are  compelled  to  house  them- 
selves m  cheerless  and  squalid  quarters.    From  such 
surroundings  issues  forth  every  night  an  army  of 
men  who  find  a  refuge  and  the  gratification  of  their 
social  instincts  in  the  saloon.    The  same  thing  may 
be  said  with  regard  to  that  appalling  modern  evil,  the 
white-slave  traffic.    Tear  up  that  sinister  thing  by  the 
roots,  and  you  will  find  them  well  down  in  economic 
soil.    Thousands  of  girls  and  women  are  working  for 
wages  that  are  barely  sufficient  to  keep  body  and 
soul  together.    In  such  cases  they  must  either  suffer 
want  and  deny  themselves  certain  pleasures  craved 
by  young  hfe,  or  supplement  their  wages  by  occa- 


TNTRODUCTION 


sional  prostitution.  That  in  all  of  our  great  cities 
there  are  hundreds  who  are  led  astray  every  year 
through  economic  stress  is  the  testimony  of  social 
workers  who  are  conversant  with  the  facts.  Clearer 
recognition  that  the  social  question  is  an  ethical 
question  is  largely  responsible  for  the  new  awaken- 
ing of  the  churches  to  the  importance  of  the 
problem. 

As  a  result  of  this  social  revival  of  the  church 
there  has  come  a  new  interest  in  the  sociological 
study  of  the  Bible.  The  words  of  the  law  and  the 
prophets,  of  Jesus  and  the  apostles,  have  been  ap- 
proached from  the  social  view-point,  and  from  the 
word  new  light  has  been  breaking  forth  on  many 
dark  problems. 

For  many  years  the  writer  has  been  intensely  in- 
terested in  the  social  question.    He  is  conscious  of  a 
deep  debt  of  gratitude  to  the  men  whose  investigations 
m  biblical  sociology  have  not  only  made  the  Bible  a 
new  book  to  him.  but  also  opened  up  new  fields  of 
social  service.     He  has  been  trying  to  discharge 
that  debt  by  interpreting  the  work  of  the  specialists 
to  the  men  and  women  of  the  congregations  which 
he  has  served  as  minister.    Some  years  ago,  in  read- 
ing over  the  Lord's  Prayer,  there  came  to  him  like  a 
new  discovery  the  social  ideals  of  that  wonderful 
prayer.     Further  study  and  research  strengthened 
the  conviction,  that  in  this  prayer  of  Jesus  we  have 
a  social  gospel  of  great  value  in  these  days  of  social 
unrest  and  reconstruction.    The  present  work  is  an 


4  THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD  S  PKAVER 

approach  to  the  social  question  through  the  Lord's 
Prayer.  It  is  intended  primarily  as  a  text-book  for 
men's  classes,  Young  Men's  Christian  Associations 
mission-study  classes,  etc.  The  effort  has  been  to 
provide  a  book  that  will  mediate  between  the  spe- 
cialists and  the  average  man  who  has  had  little  op- 
portunity for  special  training  in  economic  and  bib- 
lical science. 


.,'^ 


I 

THE  HISTORICAL  FOUNDATIONS  OF  THE 
SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  JESUS 


The  Lord's  Prayer  is  recorded  in  two  of  the 
Gospels.  Matthew  reports  it  as  a  part  of  the  Ser- 
mon on  the  Mount.  Luke  tells  us  that  while  Jesus 
was  praying  in  a  certain  place,  one  of  the  disciples 
said  to  him :  "  Lord,  teach  us  to  pray,  as  John  also 
taught  his  disciples  "—and  then  follows  the  prayer, 
together  with  the  Master's  exposition  of  the  subject 
of  prayer.  (Luke  ii  :  1-13.) 

Preliminary  Questions  of  Criticism  and  Interpretation 

The  Tii'o  Prayers  Compared 

In  comparing  the  two  prayers,  some  differences 
are  to  be  noted.  Luke  addresses  God  simply  as 
"Father."  Matthew  enlarges  by  saying,  "Our 
Father,  which  art  in  heaven."  Luke  omits  the 
petition,  "  Thy  will  be  done,  as  in  heaven,  so  on 
earth."  Matthew  says  "  this  day."  Luke  says  "  day 
by  day."  Matthew  uses  the  word  "  debts,"  while 
Luke  employs  the  word  "  sins."  Luke  omits  the 
clause,  "  But  deliver  us  from  the  Evil  One."    Some 

5 


6  lUE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  HIE  LORDS  I'RAVEK 

scholars  imike  the  hannonic  suggestion  that  Jesus 
taught  the  same  prayer  twice,  and  we  can  agree  that 
the  suggestion  is  by  no  means  improbable.  In  any 
case  the  dUlcrences  between  the  two  prayers  are  not 
important,  and  even  if  Luke's  version  be  accepted 
as  the  original  form  of  the  prayer,  this  fact  does 
not  impair  the  ethical  and  social  implications  of  the 
prayer  itself. 

The  Scope  of  the  Prayer 

A  second  critical  question  that  arises  in  connection 
with  the  prayer,  and  the  sermon  of  which  it  forms 
a  part  is  the  question  as  to  the  scope  of  its  teach- 
ing.    Was  It  intended  simply  for  the  disciples,  or 
had  It  an  application  to  the  multitudes  as  well?    Is 
God  merely  the  Father  of  those  who  believe,  and 
are  the   demands   and  privileges   of   brotherhood 
iimited  to  the  members  of  the  kingdom.?    The  gen- 
erally accepted  view  of  scholars  is  in  favor  of  the 
universal  scope  of  the  words  of  Jesus. 
_  "  No  solution  of  difficulties  is  sound  which  ques- 
tions tae  universal  scope  of  Jesus'  words.    It  is  true 
that  the  disciples  are  distinguished  at  the  beginning 
from  the  multitudes  at  the  end,  but  the  morality  of 
the  sermon  is  not  meant  for  one  class  in  such  a  sense 
as  to  exclude  others  from  its  claims.    If  the  muhi- 
tudes  were  not  disciples,  they  might  have  been,  and 
ought  to  have  been,  and  when  Jesus  speaks  it  is 
for  every  one  who  has  ears  to  iK^ar.  .  .  The  sermon 
IS  spoken  ,n  the  common  air,  which  ail  men  breathe 


mSTORUAI,    IdlXDATIONS 


and  if  it  is  binding  on  any,  it  is  binding  to  pre- 
cisely the  same  extent  on  all."  » 

That  this  position  is  not  contrary  to  the  teaching 
of  tlie  First  Gospel  is  clear  from  Matthew  23  :  i,  8f., 
in  which  our  Lord,  addressing  not  only  the  disciples, 
but  also  the  multitude,  said :  "  But  be  ye  not  called 
Rabbi;  for  one  is  your  Master,  even  Christ;  and  all 
ye  are  brethren.  And  call  no  man  your  father  upon 
the  earth;  for  one  is  your  Father,  which  is  in 
heaven." 

Is  the  Lord's  Prayer  Original? 

To  what  extent  was  the  prayer  original  with 
Jesus?  We  are  not  surprised  that  scholars  have 
found  in  certain  of  the  synagogue  prayers  passages 
bearing  a  striking  resemblance  to  several  of  the  peti- 
tions in  the  model  prayer.  It  would  be  strange 
if  such  were  not  the  case.  Jesus  came  not  to  destroy 
the  law  and  the  prophets,  but  to  fulfil.  Men  had 
called  God  "  Father,"  had  prayed  for  the  forgive- 
ness of  sins  and  for  daily  bread,  and  with  eager, 
anxious  hearts  had  cried  out  for  the  coming  of  the 
kingdom  centuries  before  this  prayer  was  uttered. 

Not  only  in  Judaism,  but  in  the  great  ethnic 
faiths,  it  is  possible  to  find  parallel  phrases,  for  in 
the  Lord's  Prayer  there  is  nothing  sectarian,  na- 
tional, or  racial.  It  is  catholic,  timeless,  a  uni- 
versal prayer  for  mankind.     It  is  said  that  at  the 

Mounl"''  ^^""^'  "  '^^'^  ''"^'■^'  Interpretation  of  the  Sermon  on  the 


8  TUE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  or  THE  I.OKD's  PRAYF.R 

Parliament  of  Religions,  held  in  Chicago  some  years 
ago,  representatives  of  all  the  great  religions  of 
the  world,  diflfering  widely  in  their  theological  and 
philosophical  points  of  view,  in  their  ideals  and 
their   conceptions   of   ethical   obligations,   in   their 
creedal  statements  and  ritualistic  observances,  were 
none  the  less  able  to  unite  on  the  common  platfor-n 
of  the  Lord's  Prayer.     What  a  tribute  to  the  re- 
ligious genius  of  Jesus  and  to  the  universal  appli- 
cation of  this  prayer,  when  Jew  and  Gentile,  Mo- 
hammedan and  Christian,  Buddhist  and  the  follower 
of  Confucius  bow^d  tie  knee,  and  reverently  re- 
peated together  that  prayer  which  fell  upon  the  ears 
of  the  listening  multitudes  nearly  nineteen  hundred 
years  ago  upon  the   Mount  of  Beatitudes.     The 
Lord's  Prayer  is  original,  not  so  much  in  the  new 
truth  revealed  in  the  different  petitions,  as  in  the 
combination  of  those  petitions  in  one  prayer,  and 
the  new  spirit  which  pervades  it  throughout  and 
gives  to  it  unity. 

Jesus*  Debt  to  Old  Testament  Social  Teaching 

In  order  rightly  to  evaluate  the  ethical  and  social 
teaching  of  Jesus,  it  is  essential  that  we  should  know 
something  of  the  social  ideas  embodied  in  the  Old 
Testament.  For  in  emphasizing  the  social  aspect  of 
religion,  Jesus  was  true  to  that  noble  humanitarian 
spirit  wliich  finds  so  many  expressic  js  in  the  OKI 
Testament  law  and  prophets. 


inSTORK  .\L    KOfND.XTIOXS 


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Sl^ccific  Social  Teachings  in  the  Old  Testament  Lazv 

In  the  Old  Tesiament  the  nation  is  set  forth  not 
so  much  as  a  state,  but  as  a  family;  conse(|Ucntly  it 
was  the  duty  of  every  Hebrew  to  regard  his  fel- 
low Hebrew  as  a  brother.     That  brotlierhood  was 
not  simply  a  beautiful  ideal,  to  be  realized  in  the 
far-distant   future,   is  evident   from  the   following 
injunctions  from  the  ancient  law,  in  which  brother- 
hood is  applied  to  the  social  and  industrial  life  of 
the  people.    The  loaning  of  money  for  interest  was 
forbidden.  (Deut.  2^  :  19.)    The  laborer  was  to  be 
paid  at  sundown.   (Deut.  24  :  i4f.)     Every  seven 
years  the  land  was  to         ,  and  there  was  to  be  a 
common  ownership  of  t'  j  untilled  harvest.  (Exod. 
23  :  II.)     All  debts  were  outlawed  in  the  seventli 
year,  if  the  debtor  was  a  Hebrew.  (Deut.  15  :  i.) 
The   poor   traveler   was   permitted    to   satisfy   his 
hunger  from  the  corn-fields  and  vineyards,  but  must 
not  carry  any  of  the  fruit  or  corn  away  with  him. 
(Deut.  27,  :  24f.)     At  harvest-time  the  poor  were 
permitted  to  glean  in  the  vineyards  and  the  harvest- 
iields,  and  the  owners  were  forbidden  to  reap  wholly 
the  corners  of  the  field.  (Lev.  19  :  9.)    The  creditor 
was  forbidden  to  go  into  the  debtor's  home  to  filch 
his  pledge;  and  if  the  pledge  was  a  garment,  he 
must  return  it  at  sundown,  in  order  that  the  poor 
man  might  sK-ep  comfortably.   (Deut.  24  :  10-13.) 
All  land  was  looked  upon  as  belonging  to  God,  and 
must  not  be  sold  forever.   (Lev.  25  :  2t,.)     As  an 

B 


f 


lO 


TFIIC  SOriAI.  FDKAf.S  OK  TrTK  f.OKn's  PKAVrCR 


aiUidntc   (c.  ihc  land-hunger  and  capitalistic   nuh- 
lessness  ot  the  rich  and  powerful,  it  was  provided 
that  in  the  jubilee  year,  which  was  once  in  every 
fifty  years,  there  should  be  a  general  reconstruction 
of  society.     Slaves  were  to  be  set  free;  all  debts 
should  be  canceled,  and  the  families  who  through 
nil-fortune  had  lost  their  land  should  have  their 
original  possessions  restored   to  them.    (Lev.   25  : 
8-17.  47-55)     That  the  laws  relating  to  the  year  of 
jubilee  were  ever  enforced  may  probably  be  ques- 
tioned.     That    the    selfish    and    powerful    found 
methods  ot  modifying  other  economic  and  social 
provisions  for  the  protection  of  the  weak  can  scarcely 
be   doubted.      IJut  that   these   humanitarian   ideals 
with  their  practical  applications  should  have  found 
expression  in  these  ancient  laws  proves  that  thev- 
must  have  been  powerful  incentives  in  keeping  the 
soul  of  the  people  alive  and  sensitive  toward  all 
social  misery  and  injustice. 

Social  Ideals  of  the  I'rophets 

The  popular  idea  of  the  Hebrew  prophets  as 
mainly  foretellers  of  coming  events  is  not  correct 
Ihe  element  of  prediction  occupied  but  a  subordi- 
nate place  in  their  teaching.  They  were  rather 
preachers  of  righteousness,  revealing  the  will  of 
Jehovah,  and  fearlessly  rebuking  the  sins  of  rulers 
and  people  alike.  Their  theology  never  smells  of 
the  midnight  oil.  It  is  practical,  not  speculative;  it 
grows  out  of  the  deep,  rich  soil  of  the  individual 


HISTORICAL   FOUXDATIOXS 


ir 


and  national  experiences.    The  ethical  note  is  struck 
continually  in  their  writings.     In  an  age  which  put 
an  undue  emphasis  on  the  externals  of  religion— 
the  offering  of  sacrifice,  ornate  ritual,  the  celebra- 
tion of  feasts,  ostentatious  gifts— and  neglected  the 
primary  laws  of  humanity  and  righteousness,  the 
prophets  fearlessly  and  without  compromise  set  be- 
fore the  people  the  unwelcome  truth,  that  the  real 
lest  of  a  religious  life  is  not  ceremonial  observances, 
but  a  clean  heart,  humility  in  the  presence  of  Jeho- 
vah, the  alleviation  of  social  misery,  and  the  adjust- 
ment of  social  wrongs.    That  these  statv-nents  are 
not  ar  unfair  interpretation  of  the  prophets  is  evi- 
dent to  a  Bible  reader.  (Cf.  Amos  5  :  21-24;  Hosea 
(>  :  6;  Micah  6  :  6-8;  Isa.  i  :  ri-i; ;  Jer.  7  :  21-24.) 
The  prophets  are  the  great  champions  of  the  poor 
and  the  oppressed.    Even  men  of  tlie  highest  rank, 
who  have  grown  rich  from  the  plunder  of  the  poor! 
are  not  exempted  from  the  prophetic  condemnation.' 
"The  Lord  will  enter  into  judgment  with  the  an- 
cients of  his  people,  and  the  princes  thereof:  for 
ye  have  eaten  up  the  vineyard;  the  spoil  of  the 
poor  is  in  your  houses.    What  mean  ye  that  ye  beat 
my  people  to  pieces  and  grind  the  faces  of  the  poor' 
saith  the  Lord  God  of  hosts  "  (Isa.  3  :  i4f.).    Amos 
declares  that  those  who  in  a  spirit  of  m.aterialistic 
heartlessness  have  sold  the  righteous  for  silver  and 
the  needy  for  a  pair  of  shoes  shall  not  escape  the 
righteous   judgments   of  Jehovah.    (Amos   2  :  6.) 
Isaiah  has  this  to  say  concerning  the  land  monopo- 


'9 


i^9 


12         THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD's  PRAYER 


lists  of  his  day.  who  to  further  their  own  selfish 
interests  have  taken  possession  of  the  liOlds  and 
houses  which  should  belong  to  the  many :  "  Woe 
unto  them  who  join  house  to  house,  that  lay  field 
to  field,  till  there  be  no  room,  that  they  may  dwell 
alone  in  the  midst  of  the  earth  "  ( Isa.  5:8).  That 
in  the  Old  Testament  law  and  prophets  are  to  be 
found  social  ideals  and  economic  laws  for  the  pro- 
tection of  the  needy  and  unfortunate  members  of 
society  which  even  to-day  would  be  regarded  as  Uto- 
pian and  revolutionary  by  many  good  and  fairly 
broa'' -minded  people  wir  scarcely  be  questioned. 

Jesus  a  Successor  to  the  Hebrczv  Prophets 

Xow  Jesus  was  a  true  successor  to  the  great 
Hebrew  prophets.  Like  the  prophets,  he  puts  little 
stress  on  the  ceremonial  side  of  religion,  and  when 
reproached  by  the  Pharisees  for  eating  with  the 
unclean,  he  quotes  with  approval  the  noble  words  of 
1  losea :  '"  For  I  desired  mercy,  and  not  sacrifice,  and 
the  knowledge  of  God  more  than  burnt  oflFerings  " 
(Matt.  9  :  13).  The  prophetic  vision  of  the  Golden 
Age,  in  which  poverty,  social  injustice,  and  war  are 
to  be  eradicated,  is  found  in  Jesus'  teaching  of  the 
kingdom  of  God.  Like  the  prophets,  Jesus  was  the 
great  champion  of  the  pooi  and  the  oppressed.  So 
intimate  wert'  his  associations  with  the  outcast 
classes  of  Jewish  society,  that  he  was  known  among 
his  contemporaries  as  "a  friend  of  publicans  and 
sinners."     Tt  is  a  significant  fact  that  v>'hen  Jesus 


HISTORICAL   FOUNDATIONS 


13 


announced  his  Messianic  mission  in  the  synagogue 
of  Nazareth  he  summed  it  up  in  a  quotation  from 
the  prophet  Isaiah.  (Luke  4  :  16-20;  cf.  Isa.  61  : 
1-3.)    This  passage  has  been  so  frequently  spiritual- 
ized that  the  average  reader  finds  himself  in  bondage 
to  that  spiritual  interpretation ;  but  vhen  it  is  taken 
with  the  whole  life  of  Jesus  we  are  forced  to  a  literal 
interpretation.    That  Jesus  was  interested  not  only 
in  the  spiritual,  but  also  in  the  material,  welfare  of 
the  people  he  had  come  lo  save,  is  clear  in  the  fol- 
lowing rassages:  Luke  7  :  19-23;  Mark  12  :  28-31  ; 
Luke  iw  :  25-37;  Matthew  25  :  31-46.    It  perhaps 
ought  to  be  stated  that  we  need  not  expect  to  find 
in  the  teaching  of  Jesus  specific  antidotes  for  the 
social  ills  of  to-day.    He  taught  principles,  not  rules. 
While  it  is  doubtless  true  that  there  can  be  no  social 
salvation  without  economic  method,  it  is  also  true 
that  something  more  than  an  economic  method  is 
needed  to  solve  the  problem.    Sabatier  has  tmly  said : 
"  Sociologists  are  more  and  more  coming  to  the  con- 
clusion, that  the  social  question  is  dependent  upon 
the  moral  question,  and  that  in  order  to  secure  the 
reign  of  justice,  and  to  bring  about  universal  hap- 
piness, men  must  be  taught  to  conquer  selfishness 
and  to  love  one  another." 

The  Lord's  Prayer  a  Social  Prayer 

The  Lord's  Prayer  is  a  great  social  prayer.    There 
is  hardly  a  phase  of  the  social  problem  that  cannot 


If  r' 


M         illH  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  TliE  LORDS  PKAVER 

be  related  in  some  way  to  that  wonderful  prayci 
It  teaches  the  Fatherhood  of  God,  and  by  implica- 
tion the  Brotherhood  of  Alan.     It  petitions  for  the 
comm^^  of  the  kingdom  of  God-the  ideal  social 
and  religions  order.     It  encourages  everv  fainting 
heart  with  Uie  superb  social  ideal,  that  the  will  -.f 
Ood  shall   be  done  on  earth  as  it   is  in  heaven 
It  does   not  overlook   the   material   necessities   of 
hfe,  but  bids  us  pray  for  daily  bread.    Our  social 
responsibility  toward  the  disinherited  children  of 
earth,  who  are  exposed  to  a  thousand  temptations  as 
a  result  of  the  sordid  conditions  under  which  they 
hve,  is  made  plain  in  the  petition,  "  Lead  us  not  into 
temptation."    The  prayer  closes  with  the  great  hope 
of  a  world  delivered  from  evil,  for  the  kmgdom,  and 
the  power,  and  the  glory  belong  to  God. 

That  the  prayer  is  social,  and  not  individualistic, 
IS  plain  from  the  pronouns  used.    It  is  not  "  I  "  and 
••me;'   but   "ours"  and   "us."     Here   is   no   in- 
cividuahstic  and  parochial  petition,  but  a  pra3'er 
that  takes  in  the  whole  world.    It  is :  "  Our  Father 
which  art  in  heaven.     Give  us  this  day  our  dailv 
bread.     And  forgive  us  our  debts,  as  we  forgive 
OUR  debtors.    And  lead  us  not  into  temptation,  but 
deliver  us  from  evil."     It  reads,  as  some  one  has 
said,     as  if  some  divine  cooperative  commonwealth 
was  on  its  knees."    It  is  the  prayer  of  the  brother- 
hood of  the  kingdom. 

The  man  who  repeats  the  Lord's  Prayer  identifies 
hmiself  with  all  Ir-nanity.  and  when  he  asks  for 


11 ISTORICAL    1-OL-  NUAT  lOXS 


IS 


bread  and  all  that  bread  symbolizes,  for  the  for- 
giveness of  debts  and  freedom  from  temptation,  he 
asks  for  all.  If  his  neighbor  be  hungry,  or  in  danger 
of  losing  his  soul  through  the  stress  of  economic 
necessity,  and  he  is  well  fed  and  nourished,  and 
sheltered  from  the  evil  things  of  life,  how  can  he 
pray:  "Give  us  this  day  our  daily  bread,  and  lead 
us  not  into  temptation,"  without  seeking  to  relieve 
the  necessities  of  his  neighbor,  and  to  i.iake  the 
crooked  paths  of  environment  straight  and  smooth 
for  his  neighbor's  feet  ? 


IvJ 


Conclusion 

It  has  been  the  purpose  of  this  chapter  to  con- 
sider certain  critical  questions  which  arise  in  con- 
nection with  the  prayer  as  a  whole,  to  call  attention 
to  the  historical  foundations  of  the  social  ideals  of 
Jesus,  to  show  how  he  utilized  the  social  ideas  of 
the  Old  Testament,  and  to  point  out  that  the  Lord's 
Prayer  is  a  great  social  prayer.  In  that  prayer  is 
to  be  found  an  important  contribution  to  the  solu- 
tion of  the  social  question. 


f  '  ■ 


Hi 


'iS«^:^. 


II 

THE  SOCIAL  IDEAL  OF  DIVINE 
FATHERHOOD 

THE  RELIGIOUS   HASIS  oy    ..IK   S(X;.AL   gUESTION 

"  C5ur  ^atljcr,  6il|n  art  in  Ijcnbm  " 
The  religious  and  social  creed  of  Jesus  sprang  out 
of  Ins  Idea  of  God.    It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that 
our  conception  of  God  will  largely  determine  our 
a  t.tude  toward  men,  life,  and  work.     If  we  tln'nk 
of  h.m  as  monarch,  then  we  shall  consider  o.irselves 
as  subjects,  other  men  as  fellow  subjects,  or  enemies 
o    our  kmg  and  love  and  sympathy  will  be  pushed 
into  the  background.    If  we  think  of  him  as  judge 
sutmg  somewhere  in  the  supreme  court  of  the  uni- 
verse  holding  in  his  hands  the  even  scales  of  jus- 
tice, then  all  our  ethical  and  theological  systems  will 
be  colored  by  our  law-court  conceptions  of  God     If 
we  thmk  of  him  as  a  despot,  jealous,  capricious,  a- 
sort  of  Oriental  sultan,  then  we  shall  cringe  before 
hini  lest  m  his  anger  he  smite  us.     The  Moham- 
medan  world  is  one  of  the  best   illustrations  of 
the   social   and   religious   effects   of  such   a   vie-/ 
Or  Lrod. 
i6 


p^ftt^h^^^p 


rrrr.  idk.m.  or  nivrxK  fat iif.r hood 


17 


The  Need  of  a  Religious  Basis 

The  Grave  Danger  of  Materialism 

Our  great  danger  to-day  is  such  a  materializa- 
tion of  life  that  men  will  no  longer  believe  in  any 
kind  of  God.    What  would  happen  if  belief  in  God, 
in  the  supremacy  of  the  spiritual  died  out  in  the 
hearts  of  the  people  of  the  world?     Mr.  Bryce,  in 
his  "  American  Commonwealth."  raises  that  issue. 
'•  Standing,"  he  writes,  "  in  the  midst  of  a  great 
American  city,  one  is  startled  by  the  thought  of 
what  might  befall  this  huge,  yet  delicate  fabric  of 
laws  and  commerce  and   social   institutions,   were 
the  foundations  it  had  rested  on  to  crumble  away. 
Sui)pose  tliat  all  these  men  ceased  to  believe  that 
there  was  any  power  above  them,  any  future  before 
them,  anything  in  heaven  or  earth  but  what  their 
senses  told  them  of."    These  are  serious  questions- 
questions  which  confront  not  only  our  x-Xmerican 
and  European  civilizations,  but  the  Oriental  world 
as  well.     In  China,  Japan,  and  India,  we  are  wit- 
nessing the  breakdown  of  the  old  religious  faiths 
by  which  millions  of  the  human  race  were  dimlv 
led.  ^ 

Harold  Begbie,  in  the  Preface  of  his  book,  "  Other 
Sheep,"  discusses  the  invasion  of  the  Orient  by  ma- 
terialistic beliefs.  "  Let  those  dense  millions  once 
believe  that  morality  is  a  social  contrivance,  that 
spiritual  responsibility  is  a  mere  invention  of  the 
priest,  that  life  has  no  immortal  significance  for  the 


M 


1  M 


-r,'-^  J 


1 8 


THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  Ul-  THE  LOKo's  PKAVER 


individual,  that  existence  here  is  nothing  more  seri- 
ous or  complex  than  a  struggle  to  gratify  the  sensual 
appetite.  Let  this  perfectly  logical  inference  from 
the  dogma  of  materialism  once  be  drawn  by  the 
cunning  and  inquisitive  mind  of  the  East,  and 
at  once  earth  would  witness  tliat  frightful  si>ectacle 
of  which  the  virtuous  man  stands  most  in  dread,  the 
human  race  organizing  itself  for  evil." 

What  History  Teaches 

History  is  full  of  examples  of  the  grave  moral 
and  social  evils  which  inevitably  follow  the  disin- 
tegration of  religious  faith.     The  Romans  of  the 
early  republic  prided  themselves  on  their  honesty 
and  truthfulness,  but  Roman  virtue  was  not  able  to 
survive  the  loss  of  religious  beliefs  and  to  withstand 
the  materialization  of  life,  which  followed  the  con- 
quest of   Greece   and   the   downfall   of   the   East. 
Grant  that  the  popular  faith  was  accompanied  by 
gross  superstition  and  immorality;  it  at  least  gave 
men  a  philosophy  of  life,  the  hope  of  a  future,  and 
a  guide  to  conduct,  and  the  gods  they  worshiped 
were  often  personifications  of   the  finest  virtues. 
Greek  philosophy  was  an  important  factor  in  under- 
mining faith  in  the  popular  gods.    Upon  the  decay 
of  religion  there  followed  a  decay  of  morals.    The 
people  became  effeminate,  and  turned  to  the  gross 
superstitions  and  abominations  of  the  East. 

As  a  modern  illustration  of  the  menace  of  a  civil- 
ization   that   has   lost    its    religious    basis,    Shailer 


THE    IDEAL   OF    DIVINF.    I-.\TriRRII(K)D 


'9 


Mathews,  in  his  book  on  *'  The  Church  and  the 
Changing  Order,"  cites  France.  "An  irreligious 
aristocracy  gave  France  the  niiserio;}  of  the  old 
regime.  An  irrehgious  proletariat  gave  France  the 
reign  of  terror.  An  irreligious  middle  class  gav- 
France  the  massacre  of  the  Communist.^.  An  irre- 
ligious republic  has  given  her  travesties  of  justice 
in  the  name  of  honor."  It  is  evident  that  a  study 
of  history  offers  little  encouragement  to  those  who 
are  seeking  to  build  an  ideal  social  order  without  a 
religious  basis. 

Belief  in  the  Spiritual  Indispensable  to  an  Ideal 
Social  Order 

If  we  ever  arrive  at  a  perfect  society,  it  will  be 
through  sacrifice,  denial  of  self,  fidelity,  and  a  deep- 
ening sense  of  brotherhood.  But  can  you  have  a 
conscience  sensitive  to  evil,  a  heart  responsive  to 
human  misery,  a  life  capable  of  service  and  sacrifice 
for  the  good  of  others,  apart  from  a  belief  in  the  in- 
visible and  the  eternal?  Is  not  the  logical  inference 
from  materialism  the  enthronement  of  self,  the  ex- 
tinction of  love  and  pity?  Nietzsche's  Superman, 
who  lords  it  over  others,  who  cries  out  against  Chris- 
tianity as  keeping  alive  organisms  that  ought  to 
perish,  and  fights  that  the  strong  man  may  have  his 
way,  is  a  plain  deduction  from  that  materialistic 
philosophy  which  flouts  religious  beliefs,  and  denies 
the  existence  of  spiritual  forces.  To  suppose  that 
a  change  in  the  social  order  will  in  itself  produce 


\'i\ 


.^^ 


-t^.lM, 


I 


20 


THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  Or  THE  LORDS  PRAYER 


a  new  and  better  type  of  men  is  to  show  ourselves 
ready  to  believe  a  delusion  and  blind  to  the  stub- 
bom    facts   of  life.     The   maladjustments   of   life 
cannot  be  rectified  by  legislative  acts.     There  will 
never  be  a  new  Jerusalem  until  we  have  new  men, 
and  without  a  belief  in  the  spiritual  new  men  are 
not  possible.     Even  radical  economic  thinkers  are 
beginning  to  recognize  this  fact.    The  older  social- 
ism was  agnostic,  and  even  atheistic.    It  taught  that, 
with  the  downfall  of  capitalism,  down  would  tumble 
its  great  bulwark,  religion.     It  attacked  the  one  as 
bitterly  and  fiercely  as  the  other.     But  the  triumph 
of  socialism  means  an  industrial  system  which  de- 
mands unselfishness,  cooperation,  magnanimity ;  and 
socialistic  writers  have  been  hard  pressed  to  ex- 
plain how  a  change  in  economic  methods  would  pro- 
duce those  qualities.    It  is  an  interesting  fact,  as  has 
been  pointed  out  by  diflferent  writers,  that  the  deeper 
socialism  of  England  and  America  is  entering  on  a 
religious  phase,  and  is  realizing  the  need  of  a  basis 
that    is    not    merely    materialistic    and    utilitarian. 
When  Socrates,  toward  the  close  of  the  "  Republic," 
is  asked  where  the  constitution  of  the  ideal  com- 
munity is  to  be  found,  he  answers,  "  Perhaps  in 
heaven."    His  word  points  to  the  truth.    If  we  are 
to  have  an  ideal  social  order,  it  must  come  down 
from  heaven.     Not  in  despair  will  we  say  it,  but  in 
recognition  that  the  priiiciples  of  this  constitution 
have  been  stated,  and  its  spirit  set  at  work,  by  Him 
who  taught  men  to  pray,  "  Our  Father." 


i-^}mi-^ix!m''if^!mwtuti.w:^f(}:fK.. 


THF.    IDKAL    OF    DIVIVF.    FATFI  FR  IK  m  )[) 


21 


11 


Divine  Fatherhood  the  Religious  Basis 

The  foundation  upon  whicli  Jesus  built  his  social 
message  is  summed  up  in  the  opening  words  of  the 
prayer,  "  Our  Father,  who  art  in  heaven." 

Not  Absolutely  Ne:>.'  Doctrine 

The  doctrine  expressed  in  this  form  of  address  to 
God  was  not  absolutely  new.  It  had  its  beginnings 
in  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures.  One  of  the  psalm- 
ists had  reached  the  high  note  of  God  as  a  Father, 
when  he  sang,  "  Like  as  a  father  pitieth  his  chil- 
dren, so  the  Lord  pitieth  them  that  fear  him  "  (Ps. 
103  :  13)-  So  too,  some  of  the  prophets,  seeing 
as  through  a  glass  darkly,  had  caught  partial  visions 
of  God  as  a  Father.  (Isa.  i  :  2;  63  :  16;  Alal. 
1:6.)  Altogether  in  the  whole  body  of  the  Old 
Testament  Scriptures  there  are  but  seven  references 
to  the  thought  of  God  as  Father.  And  in  five  of 
the  seven  passages  he  is  represented  as  the  Father 
of  the  nation. 

Jesus'  Teaching  Concerning  Divine  Fatherhood 

In  view  of  the  incomplete  and  scanty  references 
in  the  Old  Testament  to  the  thought  of  God  as 
Father,  we  can  readily  understand  that  it  was 
practically  a  new  idea  that  Jesus  gave  to  tlie  dis- 
ciples when  he  said  to  them,  "  When  ye  pray,  say, 
Our  Father,  who  art  in  heaven."  They  had  thought 
of  him  as  the  Holy  One  of  Israel,  the  God  of  battles, 


L^.^^^w^TWS^^i^n 


22 


Till.  SDflAI,  IDK.M.s  ol    TIIK  I.OKd's  PRAYI-.R 


the  Jiulj,'c.  the  Great  King;  hut  when  tlicy  learned 
that  as  individuals  they  might  kneel  before  him  and 
eall  him  I'ather,  they  were  introduced  into  a  new 
world.     It  carried  with  it  a  new  tiieology,  a  new 
ethics,  and  a  new  interpretation  of  life. 
^  In  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  Jesus  taught  that 
God  controls  the  forces  of  nature  and  the  world  of 
men.    In  beautiful  language  that  is  more  lik      oetry 
than  prose,  Jesus  represents  the  Father  as  clothing 
the  lilies  of  the  field,  which  toil  not,  neither  do  they 
spin ;  as  watching  the  little  birds  upon  the  housetop 
and  noting  their  fall  to  the  ground ;  and  as  number 
ing  the  hairs  of  his  children's  heads.     He  does  not 
limit  his  paternal  providence  to  the  good  alone.    He 
makes  the  sun  to  rise  upon  the  evil  and  the  good, 
and  sends  rain  ujxjn  the  just  and  the  unjust.    He  is 
the  universal  Father.    (Matt.   5  :  45 ;  6  :  26,  30; 
Luke  12  :  6f.) 

The  Gosi)el  writer  Luke,  in  his  wonderful  chapter 
(15)  of  parables,  presents  Jesus  as  teaclnng,  clear- 
ly and  emphatically,  that  God  cares  with  paternal 
tenderness  for  the  souls  of  those  who  utterly  neg- 
lect him  and  have  turned  their  backs  upon  his  love. 
The  chapter  opens  with  the  statement :  "  Now  all 
the  pubh'cans  and  sinners  were  drawing  near  unto 
liim  to  hear  him."     The  pubh'cans  were  the  tax- 
collectors,  and  they  stood  as  an  embodiment  of  all 
that  was  mean  and  hateful  and  unpatriotic  in  Jew- 
ish society.    And  both  the  Pharisees  and  the  scribes, 
who  were  the  professional  religious  leaders  of  the 


1 1 

t.     I 


a^.: 


iuJ^^ 


rm:  idkai,  m-  divixk  fatftfrjiood 


i1 


f! 


^3 


people,  murnnircd.  sa.\  ini,'.  "Tin-  man  rcvrlvt'i'; 
sinners  and  eatcth  uii''  them."  \ii<l  jous  in  icplv 
to  tlieir  criticism  spoke  throe  parables— the  Lost 
Sheep,  the  Lost  Coin,  and  ihe  Lost  Son.  In  all 
of  these  parables  Jesus  was  defending,'  himself 
against  the  charge  brought  against  him,  that  he  as- 
sociated with  the  outcast  classes  of  Jewish  society, 
by  showing  that  men  even  at  their  worst  are  of 
value  in  the  sight  of  (lod.  that  God  wants  ever\body 
saved,  and  that  there  is  joy  in  the  presence  of 
the  angels  of  God  over  repenting  and  returning 
sinners. 


i'$    'y'(\ 


:| 


The  Unpopularity  of  Universal  Fatherhood 

The  world  has  been  very  reluctant  to  accept  the 
conception  of  (jod  as  the  universal  Father. 

The  Early  Church 

Even  the  disciples  of  Jesus  found  it  difficult  to 
break  away  from  the  ancient  idea  of  God  as  the 
Father  of  the  Jews  only.  It  needed  a  special  revela- 
tion to  convince  Peter  that  God  was  the  Father  of 
the  Gentiles.  You  can  catch  the  accents  of  sur- 
prise and  even  consternation,  as  he  cries  out  in  the 
house  of  Cornelius:  "Of  a  truth  I  perceive  that 
God  is  no  respecter  of  persons"  (Acts  lo  :  34f.). 
Notwithstanding  the  conversion  of  Peter,  there  was 
a  strong  party  in  the  church  at  Jerusalem  which 
demanded  that  all  Gentile  Christians,  in  addition  to 


m 


r:.3 


J  1  T1TI-.  SOCTAI.  rnr AI.S  of  TFIE  lord's  I'R avkr 

;iecfi)liiij,^  Jesus  as  the  Messiah,  should  submit  to 
the  rite  of  circumcision.  It  was  Ijclieved  that  thi> 
rite  intro(hiced  them  into  the  family  of  Abraham, 
and  made  them  heirs  to  the  promises  and  objects  of 
God's  fatherly  love. 

God  the  Father  of  the  Baptized 

As  Christianity  spread  westward,  and  Greeks  and 
Romans  in  increasing  numbers  entered  the  church,  a 
new  theory  was  propounded,  that  God  was  the 
Father  of  tlie  baptized.  That  heresy  still  survives  in 
some  of  the  ancient  creeds.  It  is  taught  that  bap- 
tism makes  us  children  of  (Jod  and  inheritors  of  th*' 
kingdom  of  heaven.  "  Infants  dying  unbaptized," 
says  the  Catholic  Dictionary.  "  are  excluded  from 
the  kingdom  of  heaven,  although  according  to  the 
opinion  now  universally  held,  they  do  not  undergo 
suffering  of  any  kind  in  the  next  world."  The 
doctrine  of  baptismal  regenerauon  has  written  many 
dark  pages  in  the  social  and  religious  history  of  the 
world. 

Cod  the  Father  of  the  Elect 

Still  later  in  the  history  of  Christianity  arose  John 
Calvin,  whose  system  oi  theology  was  to  become 
the  orthodox  doctrine  of  millions  of  Protestants. 
Calvin  advanced  the  idea,  wJiich  indeed  had  been 
taught  by  some  of  the  church  Fathers,  notably  Au- 
gustine, that  God  is  the  Father  of  the  elect.  As 
Dr.  Lyman   Abbott  points  out  in   his  "  Rights  of 


I 


THE    IDEAL  OF  DIVIXE   FATHERHOOD  2^ 


Man,"  Calvin  insisted  that  God  might  choose  whom 
he  liked,  and  he  might  pass  by  whom  he  liked.  In 
hen  of  the  Catholic  doctrine  which  sent  all  un- 
baptized  infants  to  l.-^bus  infantum,  the  Calvin- 
istic  doctrine  alio-,  ed  -  iLat  pl.-:t  infants  dying  in 
m fancy  are  rege -rated  by  Christ,  through  the 
Spirit,  who  work^Ji  when,  and  where,  and  how 
he  pleaseth." 

The  Creeds  and  Divine  Fatherhood 

It  would  be  easy  to  show  that  the  historic  creeds 
and  confessions  of  faith  are  almost  silent  concern- 
ing this  great  truth  of  divine  Fatherhood.  They 
discuss  the  nature  of  God,  problems  of  substance 
and  essence,  of  predestination  and  free  will,  of  how 
to  avoid  people  who  have  b^en  excommunicated, 
theories  of  aton-ment  and  inspiration;  but  they 
ignore  or  make  but  a  passing  reference  to  that  new 
name  for  God,  which  was  continually  upon  the  lips 
of  Jesus.  And  that  fact  explains  not  only  some  of 
the  sorry  reading  in  the  history  of  the  Christian 
church,  but  also  why  we  have  to-day  a  social  prob- 
lem that  is  serious  and  menacing. 

Modern  Science  and  Divine  Fatherhood 

It  is  sometimes  said  that  modern  science,  in  em- 
phasizing the  vastness  of  the  universe  and  the  com- 
parative insignificance  of  man,  has  made  it  difficult 
to  believe  in  a  God  who  clothes  the  lilies  of  the 
field,  notes  the  fall  of  the  sparrow,  and  cares  for 
c 


k 


l|l 


26         THF  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD's  PRAYER 

the  soul  of  the  prodigal  in  the  far  country.     The 
stern  facts  of  the  universe  are  credited  with  des- 
troying faith  in  God  as  a  loving  Father.    It  is  true 
that  we  are  recognizing  as  previous  generations  did 
not,  that  we  live  under  a  reign  of  law.    The  atom 
that  dances  in  the  sunshine  is  as  much  under  the 
domain  of  law  as  the  great  stars  which  move  through 
their  courses.    And  yet  this  is  but  to  say  that  God 
is   not   a   capricious,   eccentric   God.     He   works 
orderly,   rationally  in   his   universe.     One   of   the 
greatest  incentives  to  human  progress  is  the  fact 
that  we  may  understand  his  laws,  depend  upon  their 
inevitable  working,  and  put  ourselves  in  harmony 
with  them.    The  greatness  of  the  universe  need  not 
pKinge  us  into  despair.    On  the  contrary,  it  should 
give  us  a  larger  conception  of  the  almighty  power  of 
him  who  is  in  all,  and  over  all,  and  through  all. 
There  is  nothing  in  the  teaching  of  modern  science 
which  need  contradict     le  thought  of  God  as  a 
loving  Father.     Science  leaves   the  greatest  and 
deepest  mysteries  of  life  untouched. 


The  New  Awakening 

It  is  only  ir.  the  last  half-century  that  the  truth 
of  divine  Fatherhood  has  come  into  its  own.  A 
more  critical  and  careful  study  of  the  Gospels  has 
shown  the  large  place  it  occupied  in  the  thought  of 
Jesus.  The  New  Testament  calls  God  "  Father  " 
about  two  hundred  times.    Recognition  of  this  fact 


THE    IDEAL   OF   DIVINE   FATHERHOOD 


27 


lias  come  lik  a  new  discovery.  It  has  introduced 
a  new  spirit  into  Christianity.  It  has  been  like  a 
wind  from  the  sea  blowing  through  our  musty, 
shop-worn,  scholastic  systems  of  theoiogy.  It  has 
compelled  a  revising  of  many  articles  in  the  creeds, 
and  has  sent  others  to  the  scrap-heap.  Its  social  im- 
plications have  been  revolutionary.  It  has  called 
for  new  crusades  against  all  forms  of  social  evils. 
It  is  writing  new  economic  programs,  and  placing 
new  laws  upon  the  statute-books.  It  means  a  t:  nv 
valuation  of  life,  that  man  is  of  more  value  than  a 
sheep,  that  the  rights  of  humanity  are  of  more  im- 
portance than  any  vested  interest.  It  is  a  social 
ideal  of  wonderful  import.  Said  Jesus,  "  God  is  our 
Father,"  and  instantly  a  new  divine  hope  began  sing- 
ing in  the  hearts  of  the  downtrodden  everywhere. 


U 


Ill 


THE  SOCIAL  IDEAL  OF  SONSHIP 

A  COROLLARY  OF  DIVINE  FATHERHOOD 

"  (Duv  gniliet,  faljo  art  in  Ijsaficn  " 

That  new  name  for  God,  "  Father,"  which  Jesus 
taught  to  the  disciples  and  to  the  multitude,  carries 
with  it  a  new  sense  of  the  inherent  worth  of  man 
Divine  kinship  is  a  corollary  of  divine  Fatherhood 
When  a  man  lifts  his  eyes  to  the  Eternal  and  calls 
him  "  my  Father,"  there  comes  to  him  a  conscious- 
ness of  his  unique  place  in  the  universe.    He  knows 
that  he  is  not  simply  the  product  of  material  ele- 
ments, perishing  with  the  physical,  not  kin  to  the 
hrute  that  follows  its   appetites,   but  kin  to  God 
capable  of  entering  into  fellowship  with  the  Father' 
and  with  a  life  that  shall  outlast  the  eternities 


The  Worth  of  a  Man :  the  Pagan  View 

W'c  can  best  appreciate  Jesus'  teaching  concerning 
the  worth  of  man  if  we  note  first,  bv  way  of  con- 
trast, the  low  estimate  of  life  held  by  the  people  of 
his  age. 

29, 


THE   SOCIAL    IDEAL  OF   SONSHIP 


29 


The  Place  of  the  Slave 

Gibbon  estimates-  tliat  in  the  Roman  Empire,  out 
of  a  population  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  millions 
of  people,  sixty  millions  were  slaves.  The  slave 
was  not  usually  reckoned  as  a  human  being,  but  was 
classed  with  farm  utensils,  houses,  and  catJe.  'Ac- 
cording to  Varro,  in  his  work  on  agriculture,  there 
are  three  kinds  of  implements  for  tillage:  those  that 
are  dumb,  as  for  example  wagons;  those  that  utter 
inarticulate  sounds,  as  for  example  oxen;  and 
thirdly,  those  that  talk.  The  last  mentioned  are 
slaves.  Manual  labor  was  considered  ignoble,  and 
was  i)erformed  only  by  slaves.  In  return  for  their 
labor  they  were  given  food,  shelter,  and  raiment; 
that  is,  so  long  as  they  had  earning  capac^'ty.  When 
that  ceased  they  were  frequently  put  out  of  the  way, 
just  as  you  sometimes  shoot  an  old  horse  which  has 
outlived  its  usefulness.  As  a  general  rule  a  master 
had  no  regard  for  the  life  and  suffering  of  a  slave. 
Flavius  wantonly  killed  a  slave  to  show  his  friends 
how  a  man  looked  in  the  agonies  of  death.  One  of 
the  emperors  used  to  fatten  the  fish  of  his  pond 
upon  the  flesh  of  slaves,  and  his  example  was  fol- 
lowed b}'  other  Roman  lords. 


r  n 


The  Rights  of  Childhood 

In  Greek  and  Roman  literature  you  find  no  refer- 
ences to  the  sacredncss  of  childhood.  The  rights 
of  the  father  were  absolute  so  far  as  the  children 


^1 


u 


so 


THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LOKd's  PRAYEK 


li  ■■ 


were  concerned.  He  could  sell  them  into  slavery, 
or  kill  them  as  pleased  his  fancy.'  The  custom 
of  puttmg  to  death  new-born  infants  had  become 
almost  conmion.  The  exposure  of  children  by  par- 
ents who  did  not  wish  to  stain  their  hands  with 
the  blood  of  their  offspring  was  carried  on  so  ex- 
tensively that  it  led  to  the  establishment  of  a  new 
industry,  that  of  converting  this  waste  material  into 
prostitutes  or  slaves. 

Among  the  Hebrews  and  Jews  a  much  higher  con- 
ception of  the  rights  of  children  was  held.  Chil- 
dren were  regarded  as  gifts  of  God,  tokens  of 
divine  favor.  At  the  same  time  the  father  was 
supreme  over  his  children.  They  were  his  property 
as  truly  as  his  cattle  and  fields.  He  held  over  them' 
the  power  of  life  and  death.  This  is  plainly  evident 
m  the  proposed  sacrifice  of  Isaac,  and  in  the  case  of 
Jephthah's  daughter. 

T/tc  Gladiatorial  Contests 

In  the  gladiatorial  contests,  which  were  so  popular 
HI  the_  Roman  world  during  the  early  centuries  of 
Christianity,   we   have   a  good   illustration   of  the 
common  contempt  for  the  sanctity  of  human  life 
When  a  gladiator  was  van(|uished  bv  his  opponent 
the  decision  of  life  or  death  was  left  with  the  specta- 
tors.    If  they  wave<l  their  handkerchiefs,  his  life 
was  spared,  but  if  they  held  up  their  thumbs,  it  was 
the  sign  for  the  fatal  blow.     W^omen  and  girls  in 

J  Uhlhorn,  "Conflict  of  Christianity  with  Heathenism." 


THE   SOCIAL    IDEAL   OF   SONSHIP 


31 


their  teens  lightly  and  without  hesitation  gave  the 
sign  which  doomed  a  strong  man  to  death.  It  is 
said  that  Trajan  in  the  period  of  four  months  com- 
pelled ten  thousand  prisoners  and  gladiators  to 
engage  in  mortal  combat  in  the  arena.  In  vain 
will  you  search  the  literature  of  that  period  to  find 
any  censure  of  this  wanton  destruction  of  life.  Xo 
public  voices  condemned  it,  and  there  was  no  public 
sentiment  against  it.  Common  human  life  was  at  its 
lowest  market  value.  It  could  be  abused,  exploited, 
sacrificed  without  protest  from  the  wise  and  great. 


The  Worth  of  a  Man :  the  View  of  Jesus 

Fatherhood  and  Sonshily 

The  Gospels  everywhere  emphasize  as  one  of  the 
fundamental  principles  in  the  teaching  of  Jesus  the 
absolute  worth  of  the  individual.  The  high  valua- 
tion that  Jesus  placed  upon  man  is  a  plain  deduction 
from  his  doctrine  of  divine  Fatherhood.  If  God 
is  the  Father  of  all  men,  in  the  sense  that  he  loves 
all  men,  it  follows  that  every  man,  however  poor, 
humble,  neglected,  or  sinful,  is  hi.-,  'hild.  the  object 
of  his  love. 

It  perhaps  or.ght  to  be  said  that,  while  every  man 
by  virtue  of  tlie  divine  Fatherhood  is  a  child  of 
God  in  the  sense  that  he  possesses  a  moral  nature, 
is  an  object  of  God's  providential  and  gracious  love, 
and  is  capable,  however  sinful,  of  returning  to  the 
Father  and  entering  into  fellowship  with  him,  there 


i>.<i 


1 1! 


32         THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORDS  PRAYER 

is  a  more  intensive  conception  of  sonship  revealed 
by  Jesus  (Read  Matt.  12  :  46-50;  John  i  :  i^; 
cf.  Rom.  8  :  14-17.)  Not  until  we  have  received 
Jesus  and  are  seeking  to  do  the  will  of  the  Father 
in  heaven  do  we  arrive  at  the  full  privileges  and 
nghts  of  sonsh.p.  Not  until  then  do  we  possess  the 
tihal  spirit  whereby  we  cry,  "  Abba.  Father,"  and 
are  conscious  of  the  Spirit  witnessing  with  our  spirit 
that  we  are  the  children  of  God. 

The  Child 

Jesus  taught  that  the  life  of  every  individual  as 
such  ,s  of  supreme  value  in  God's  sight.    Not  until 
Jesus  came   were  the   rights  of  childhood  clearly 
recognized.    Over  the  little  ones  he  cast  the  shield 
of  his  protection.     He  takes  the  child  as  a  type 
of  the  citizen  of  God's  kingdom.  (Matt.  18  :  .f  ) 
One  of  the  most  beautiful  incidents  in  the  life  of  our 
Lord  IS  when  certain  parents  bring  their  children 
to  him  that  he  may  touch  them,  and  the  disciples 
unable  to  appreciate  the  dignity  and  sacredness  of 
childhood,   rebuke   them   that   bring  them      It   is 

Zflt  '^^'^  l"T  '^'""'^  ^'^^  indignation,  said 
unto  them:  'Suffer  the  little  children  to  come  unto 
me,  and  forbid  them  not;  for  of  such  Is  the  king- 
dom of  God"  (Mark  10  :  13-16). 

The  Poor 

That  Jesus  did  not  regard  poverty  as  an  obstacle 
in  the  way  of  the  fullest  fellowship  with  the  Father 


THE   SOCIAL    IDEAL   OF    SOXSHIP 


33 


IS  plainly  evident  in  the  Gospels.  Indeed,  the  teach- 
ing of  Jesus  is  so  nuicii  in  the  opposite  direction 
that  some  have  argued  that  Jesus  was  a  Socialist  a 
labor  leader,  a  champion  of  the  poor  and  outcast 
agamst  tlie  privileged  classes  of  his  day.  (Matt 
II  :  5;  19  :  16-25;  Luke  4  :  18.) 

While  it  is  true  that  the  triumph  of  the  social 
Ideals  of  Jesus  involved  a  change  in  the  social  order 
It  IS  also  true  that  Jesus  looked  at  life,  not  from  the 
economic,  but  from  the  moral  point  of  view.     He 
saw  clearly  that  the  possession  of  wealth  and  the 
struggle  to  obtain  wealth  are  apt  to  make  a  man 
selfish,  ruthless,  and  unsocial.    Hence  his  warnings 
against  worldliness  and  the  dcceitfulness  of  riches 
It  was  because  Jesus  was  the  friend  of  the  lowly 
the  champion  of  the  oppressed,  and  absolutely  indif- 
ferent to  the  outward  trappings  of  wealth,  culture 
and  position  that  Lowell  called  him  "  the  first  true 
democrat  who  ever  breathed."     If  the  ground  of 
democracy   be   defined   as   optimism    touching   the 
masses,  then  it  can  be  said  that  in  Jesus'  valuation 
of  the  poor  -^^  children  of  the  Father,  with  divine 
possibilities  slumbering  in  their  lives,  we  have  the 
beginnings  of  democracy. 

The  Outcast 

According  to  Jesus,  not  only  the  poor,  but  the 
sinful,  the  abandoned,  the  outcast  are  of  value  in 
the  sight  of  God.  Jesus  was  continually  getting  into 
trouble   with   the   morally   respectable   be-ause   he 


h 


.u 


III 


K  SOCI.M.  IDKAI.S  <  >1     I  111;  lord's  I'KAVLR 


made  little  (listiiu'tioM  bctwocMi  sins  of  passion  and 
sins  of  disposition,  hcransc  he  was  continnally  cross- 
ing the  dead-line  of  society  and   associating  with 
those  who  were  under  the  han.      lie   was  known 
among  his  contemporaries  as  "  a  friend  of  publicans 
and  sinners  "  (Matt,  ii  :   i,;).    When  the  Tharisccs 
reproached  him  for  associating  with  bad  people,  he 
answered :  -  They  that  are  whole  have  no  need  of  a 
physician,  but  they  that  are  sick"  (Matt.  9  :  12). 
Uc   was  as   ready   to  accept  entertainment  at   the 
house  of  Zacch.eus  the  publican  as  at  the  house  of 
Smion  the  Pharisee,     lie  believed  that  even  in  the 
worst  cases  of  moral  failure  there  are  golden  pos- 
sibilities, that  in  spite  of  their  waywardness,  and 
wantonness,  and  apostasy  from  the  good  and  the 
true,  they  can  be  reclaimed  and  made  to  shine  as 
stars  in  the  kingdom  of  the  Father.    So  high  a  valua- 
tion did  he  place  upon  the  man.  stripped  not  only  of 
worldly  goods,  but  even  of  character,  that  he  de- 
clared he  came  not  to  call  the  righteous,  but  sinners 
to  repentance,  that  his  supreme  nnssion  on  earth  was 
to  seek  and  to  save  that  which  was  lost.  (Afatt.  9  : 
i.^ ;  Luke  19  :  10.)    This  was  strange  and  ofTcnsive 
doctnne  to  Pharisees  and  Sadducees,  to  pagan  phi- 
losophers  and   civil   rulers,   that   the   soul   of   the 
humble,  the  poor,  the  ignorant,  the  slave,  the  sinner 
was  of  priceless  worth  in  the  sight  of  heaven,  and 
might  be  made  peer  to  angels.     It  is  a  social  ideal 
of  sue!-,  consequences  that  even  to-day  we  are  just 
beginning  to  recognize  its  tremendous  significance. 


TMK    hO(  lAl.    IDI.AI,    ,,i     SU.NMIII- 


.^5 


.l/flu  a  Bciiuj  u-ilh  an  Immortal  Outlook 

Jesus  (Iocs  not  argue  the  question  of  imniortalily. 
I  Ic  takes  it  for  granted.  I  le  groun<|.  tlie  hope  of 'a 
future  life  upon  man's  essential  kiuNhip  to  (kxi.  If 
it  be  true  that  man  is  a  child  of  (io.l,  made  in  his 
iikciiess,  of  peerless  value,  then  it  follows  that  he 
IS  a  being  with  an  immortal  outlook.  T!ie  b'ather 
who  looks  after  the  sparrows  upon  tlie  housetop, 
who  clothes  the  lilies  (,f  the  held,  will  not  rock  us 
iuto  any  dreamless,  sougless  slumber  that  knows  no 
waking.  (Matt.  lo  :  31.) 

Jesus  did  not  regard  suffering  as  a  contradiction 
of  GckI's  fatherly  love.  When  the  cup  of  suffering 
\yas  placed  to  his  lips,  he  did  not  revise  his  concep- 
tion ot  God.  To  believe  in  a  good  Gorl  when  the 
skies  are  troubled  overhead  is  the  highest  expres- 
sion of  the  filial  spirit.  Jesus  faced  one  of  the 
most  painful  and  shameful  of  all  deaths  with  the 
calm  fearlessness  of  a  child.  J  lis  last  words  are  an 
expression  of  filial  trust;  "  Father,  into  thv  hands  I 
commend  my  spirit." 


The  Menace  of  Materialism 

In  modern  life  Jesus'  teaching  of  the  priceless 
worth  of  man  is  menaced  by  materialism. 

The  Materialistic  Interpretation  of  Life 

I^faterialism  may  be  defined  as  the  [.hilosophical 
theory  that  everything  which   exists  is  ultimately 


.v^ 


nUi  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LOKD's  PRAVER 


i*      I 


material   in   nature.     The   consistent   and   uncom- 
promising  materialist  denies  the  reality  of  anv  finite 
or  infinite  spirit.    All  life  may  be  explained  in  terms 
of  matter,  force,  and  motion.    The  science  of  biolo"^' 
has  given  us  the  phrase  '•  struggle  for  existence." 
by  which  it  IS  meant  that  the  fittest  survive  and  the 
weak  perish.    It  is  clear  that  materialism  pulls  man 
down  from  the  pedestal  upon  which  Jesus  placed 
him,  and  makes  him  a  mere  omnivorous  animal   not 
generically  different  from  the  brute.    It  reduces'  life 
to  a  mere  struggle  for  mastery,  and  the  weal-  perish 
that  the  strong  may  survive.    Thus  Renan  takes  the 
position  that  to  such  an  extent  do  the  many  con- 
tribute to  the  progress  of  the  few  that  forty  millions 
of  people  may  be  regarded  as  dung,  do  tliey  but 
supply  the  fertility  which  will  produce  one  truly 
great  man.     It  is  clear  that  materialism  dethrones 
God  from  the  universe,  disinherits  man  of  his  hope 
of  a  future  life,  and  converts  him  into  a  mere  fight- 
ing animal,   without   love,   pity,   or  sympathy    for 
others. 

The  Commercial  Spirit 

^  The  materialistic  spirit  has  made  its  influence  felt 
m  commercial  life.  The  modern  trust,  which  too 
often  has  crushed  out  competition  by  methods  which 
outrage  the  sense  of  humanity  and  right,  has  been  de- 
fended on  the  ground  of  the  survival  of  the  fittest 
In  heu  of  Jesus'  teaching  of  the  intrinsic  worth  of 
man,  commerce  affirms  that  he  is  worth  just  so 


THE  SOCIAL   IDKAL  or   SONSHTP 


37 


much  as  he  will  bring  in  the  open  market.  It  is  all 
a  question  of  what  he  possesses,  or  his  earning 
capacity. 

The  commercial  spirit  with  its  disregard  of  human 
life  is  no  new  thing.    Jesus  had  to  meet  it  nineteen 
hundred  years  ago  in  Palestine.    One  Sabbath,  as  he 
went  into  a  synagogue,  he  saw  a  man  having  a 
withered  hand.    The  Pharisees,  who  were  waiting 
an  opportunity  of  putting  our  Lord  to  death,  pro- 
pounded the  question,  "  Is  it  lawful  to  heal  on  the 
sabbath  day?"    Jesus  in  reply  said:  "What  man 
shall  there  be  among  you  that  shall  have  one  sh^icp, 
and  if  it  fall  into  a  pit  on  the  sabbath  day,  will  he 
not  lay  hold  on  it,  and  lift  it  out?     How  much 
then  is  a  man  of  more  value  than  a  sheep?"    The 
Pharisees  made  no  answer  to  his  question,  but  by 
their  action  they  practically  said  that  the  salvation 
of  property  is  of  more  value  than   the  salvation 
of   manhood,    for   we   read   that  after  Jesus   had 
healed  the  man  they  went  out  and  took  counsel  how 
they  might  put  the  Master  to  death.   (Matt.   12  • 
9-1 5-) 

The  same  spirit  exists  to-day.  The  rights  of 
property  are  often  put  above  the  rights  of  humanity. 
Commerce  has  invaded  the  home,  and  stolen  the 
children,  and  put  them  to  work  in  mine  and  mill  and 
shop  to  grind  out  dollars.  If  to-day  Jesus  pro- 
pounded the  question,  "How  much  is  a  man  of 
more  value  than  a  sheep?"  commerce  would  not 
hesitate  in  the  answer:  "It  all  depends.     It  is  a 


m 

111 


•£. 


^^^K^^^^'^L 


'~'#i^ 


m 


k  ■ 


If 

II 


38         THE  :.OCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD's  PRAYER 

question  of  values.    Sometimes  the  man  is  of  more 
value,  and  sometimes  the  sheep." 

The  Antidote :  A  Return  to  Christ 

As  an  antidote  to  the  poison  of  materiahsm  and 
commercial  greed,  we  need  to  return  to  Jesus'  teach- 
mg  concerning  the  worth  of  man.    Without  a  beHef 
ni  the  infinite  value  of  personality,  the  greatest  in- 
centive to  human  progress  is  taken  away.     Why 
struggle  for  souls  if  they  drop  like  the  leaves ?    Why 
labor  for  society  if  it  is  to  perish  like  the  moth?    In 
a  recent  issue  of  a  Socialist  newspaper,  the  editor, 
after  defining  the  materialistic  and  Christian  con- 
ceptions of  man,  makes  this  interesting  confession: 
"  I  am  not  deciding  which  view-point  is  right,  but 
there  is  one  thing  certain,  the  man  who  thinks  his 
soul   will   live   forever,   because  cared   for  by  an 
omnipotent  God.  has  a  greater  sense  of  his  own 
dignity,  of  the  dignity  of  humanity,  of  his  mission 
m  life,  than  the  man  who  thinks  he  w-s  born  to  live 
a  few  years  and  then  perish." 

Without  a  belief  that  the  soul  of  every  man  as 
such  is  of  worth  in  God's  sight,  there  can  be  no 
real  ideal  of  justice.  The  very  essence  of  justice  is 
that  every  man  has  an  equal  right  with  other  men 
to  the  full  development  of  himself;  and  that  idea 
goes  back  to  the  teaching  of  Jesus,  that  the  poor  and 
the  humble,  the  slave  and  the  outcast,  are  priceless 
in  the  sight  of  God.    It  was  from  that  principle  that 


THE   SOCIAL   IDEAL   OF   SONSHIP 


39 


Tertullian  deduced  the  maxim:  "The  things  we 
must  not  do  to  an  emperor,  we  must  not  do  to 
any  one  else."  Take  away  Jesus'  teaching  of  the 
inherent  worth  of  humanity,  and  hfe  becomes  a 
pitiless  and  ruthless  struggle  for  power,  or  for  the 
gratification  of  sensual  desires.  One  of  the  greatest 
tasks  which  confront  the  Christian  world  to-day  is 
how  to  translate  into  laws  and  statutes,  into  indus- 
trial and  commercial  life,  Jesus'  valuation  of  man.  " 


H 


IV 


I 


THE  SOCIAL  IDEAL  OF  BROTHERHOOD 

"  O^ua:  Jfatijer,  folia  art  in  Ijea&e«  " 
®ur  btotiiexs  fiiljo  are  on  saxiif 

The  brotherhood  of  man  is  a  second  corollary  of 
divine  Fatherhood.  If  God  be  our  Father  and  we 
are  the  sons  of  God,  then  the  conclusion  is  forced 
upon  us  that  men  are  brothers.  This  was  revolu- 
tionary doctrine  in  the  days  of  Jesus,  and  it  must 
have  sounded  strange,  offensive,  and  dangerous  in 
the  ears  of  the  privileged  and  exclusive  classes  of 
that  despotic  age.  That  publicans  and  sinners  were 
to  be  considered  as  brotliers  by  scribes  and  Phar- 
isees, that  Gentile  dogs  were  to  be  welcomed  into 
the  family  of  Abraham,  on  the  basis  of  divine 
F^atherhood,  was  a  difficult  step  for  Jewish  ortho- 
doxy to  take.  Jesus  did  something  more  than  an- 
nounce a  principle  from  which  men  could  infer 
brotherhood.  He  taught  it  plainly  in  such  parables 
as  the  Good  Samaritan ;  and  in  hi'^  condemnation  of 
Pharisaism  because  of  its  spirit  of  exclusiveness  and 
religious  bigotry,  he  said  plainly,  not  only  to  the 
disciples  but  to  the  multitude,  "  One  is  your  Master, 
and  all  ye  are  brethren." 
40 


I 


'^^mmrm^¥^^mmmm 


\tw^. 


THE   SOCIAL   IDEAL  OF   BROTHERHOOD 

Brotherhood  in  the  Early  Church 


41 


Radical  and  revolutionary  as  this  doctrine  of 
brotherhood  was,  the  early  church  bravely  attempted 
the  task  of  putting  it  into  practice. 

Communism  in  the  Jerusalem  Church 

So  deep  was  the  sense  of  brotherhood  in  the  great 
church  at  Jerusalem,  with  its  more  than  three  thou- 
sand members,  that  we  have  the  record :  "  And  the 
multitude  of  them  that  believed  were  of  one  heart 
and  of  one  soul:  and  not  one  of  them  said  that 
aught  of  the  things  he  possessed  was  his  own ;  but 
they  had  all  things  common.  .  .  For  n-ither  was 
there  among  them  any  one  that  lacked:  for  as  many 
as  were  possessors  of  lands  or  houses  sold  them,  and 
brought  the  prices  of  the  things  that  were  sold,  and 
laid  them  at  the  apostles'  feet,  and  distribution  was 
made  to  each,  according  as  any  one  had  need  "  (Acts 
4  :  32-36).     This   experiment   in   Christian   com- 
munism may  have  f^een  lacking  in  economic  wisdom, 
but  It  proves  that  the  tie  of  brotherhood  was  not 
simply  sentimental,  and  that  men  and  «/;omen  filled 
with  the  spirit  of  Jesus  considered  themselves  under 
an  obligation  to  express  the  sense  of  brotherhood  in 
social  relations  and  in  the  use  of  property. 

Specific  Applications  of  Brotherhood 

Tn   the   early  centuries   the   Christians   lived   as 
brothers.    Even  a  stranger  who  came  with  a  certifi- 

D 


4i 


^.' 


•tal^ 


r  I 


f  I 


r  i  ;. 


42         THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD's  PRAYER 

cate  that  he  was  a  Christian  was  received  as  a 
brother.  Said  a  pagan  in  astonishment,  "  They  love 
each  other  without  knowing  each  other."  It  was  in- 
deed the  very  opposite  of  that  heathen  saying, ''  Man 
is  a  wolf  to  a  man  he  does  not  know." 

The  widows  especially  were  cared  for  by  the 
church.  In  fact,  a  New  Testament  writer  gives  as  a 
test  of  pure  and  undefiled  religion,  "to  visit  the 
widows  and  the  fatherless  in  their  affliction." 

That  the  early  church  did  not  limit  the  idea  of 
brotherhood  to  believers  is  evident  from  the  advice 
given  by  the  Emperor  Julian  the  Apostate.  Hoping 
to  counteract  the  influence  of  Christianity,  he  thus 
counsels  one  of  his  pagan  priests;  "  Build  numerous 
places  of  refuge  and  entertainment  for  strangers 
in  every  city,  for  it  is  a  disgrace  that  these  impious 
Gahleans,  besides  theii  own  people,  should  support 
ours  also,  while  ours  are  seen  of  all  men  to  perish 
without  any  assistance  from  us." 

It  is  true  that  the  early  church  made  no  attack 
upon  the  institution  of  slavery,  but  they  frankly 
acknowledged  the  slave  as  a  brother,  and  freely  ad- 
mitted to  the  highest  positions  those  who  had  risen 
from  a  state  of  servitude.  ITermas,  the  author  of 
the  "^  Shepherd,"  was  a  slave,  yet  he  was  a  brother 
of  Pius,  the  Bishop  of  ICome.  At  the  beginning  of 
the  third  century,  the  bishopric  of  Rome  itself  was 
occupied  by  Callistus,  who  had  been  a  slave  of  an 
ofticer  in  the  imperial  household.  Slavery  lingered 
as  an  institution   down  to  modern  times,  but  its 


>   ) 


THE   SOCIAL    IDEAL   OF    liROTIIERIIOOD  43 

death-blow  was  struck  when  Jesus  announced  that 
all  men  are  brothers,  and  Paul,  applying  that  great 
principle,  declared  that  "  in  Christ  Jesus  there  is 
neither  bond  or  free."  "  With  us  there  is  no  dif- 
ference between  the  poor  and  the  rich,  the  slave 
and  the  freeman.  VVe  call  ourselves  brothers  be- 
cause we  believe  ourselves  equal."  (Lactantius.) 

Brotherhood  and  the  Social  Question 

The  Class  IV ar 

One  01  the  first  things  that  impress  the  ordinary 
stuuont  and  observer  of  social  forces  is  the  bitter- 
ness of  the  struggle  now  being  waged  between  the 
two  great  classes  in  society,  organized  capital  and 
organized  labor.     '•  War  "  may  not  be  a  pleasant 
term  to  use.  but  when  a  strike  is  on  (and  we  are 
rarely  free  from  such  industrial  disturbances)  we 
have  a  revelation  of  hate,  prejudice,  and  passion  - 
winch  makes  ,t  the  only  fitting  term  to  employ.    The 
press,   which   represents  labor  and  capitalistic  in- 
terests, ,s  by  no  means   free   from  responsibility 
When  capital  is  represented  as  a  being  with  the 
body  of  a  giant  and  the  head  of  a  hog.  with  his 
feet  planted  firmly  upon  the  necks  of  the  working 
men.  and  labor  is  depicted  as  an  anarchist  lighting 
a  fuse  ^vhIch  connects  with  a  bomb,  there  can  be 
but  one  efl^ect-the  fomenting  of  hatred  and  class 
feehng  between  two  groups  in  society,  whose  eco- 
nomic  interests   are   linked   up   together.     In   the 


it 


ll 


44 


THF.  SOCIAL  IDF.ALS  OF  THE  LORD  S  PRAYER 


I     i 


r    j 


presence  of  all  this  blind  hate  and  greed,  with  its 
threats  of  intimidation,  reprisals,  boycotts,  and  lock- 
outs, the  man  of  altruistic  impulses  stands  appalled, 
and  can  hardly  tuid  courage  to  stammer  out  that  old 
scriptural  reminder,  "  Sirs,  ye  are  brethren." 

The  demand  for  industrial  justice  is  legitimate, 
and  should  be  pressed  by  every  man  who  has  eyes 
to  see  and  a  heart  to  feel  the  miseries  of  the  wounded 
and  exi)loited  members  of  society  who  lie  on  the 
Jericho  road ;  but  surely  it  is  folly  to  suppose 
that  out  of  a  cataclysm  of  hate  and  greed  will 
emerge  a  society  characterized  by  peace,  prosperity, 
and  fraternity.  "  A  good  tree  cannot  bring  fo^th 
evil  fruit,  neither  can  a  corrupt  tree  bring  forth 
good  fruit."  The  social  problem  will  never  be  solved 
by  the  methods  of  the  Red  Indian. 

The  Laze  of  Competition 

Society  to-day  is  on  a  competitive  basis,  and  it  is 
held  by  some  that  so  long  as  competition  exists, 
brotherhood  in  any  real  sense  of  the  term  is  Utopian. 
We  are  told  that  modern  business  is  dominated  by 
the  survival  of  the  strongest,  that  it  is  a  case  of 
big  eating  little,  until  at  last  only  the  strongest  and 
most  piggish  forms  of  life  are  left.  Business  men 
are  frequently  represented  as  a  horde  of  pirates  and 
wreckers,  waiting  for  an  opportunity  to  entrap  the 
unso])histicutcd  and  less  cunning  and  to  despoil  them 
of  their  goods.  While  it  may  be  recognized  that  the 
commercial  [)irate  who  sails  the  high  seas  on  a  quest 


m^-mmM^^' 


THE   SOCIAL   IDEAL  OF   BROTHERHOOD 


45 


for  loot  is  by  no  means  a  strange  figure  in  our  com- 
mercial and  industrial  life,  it  should  not  be  forgot- 
ten that  there  is  a  nobler  side  to  commercial  life 
even  on  a  competitive  basis. 

Modern  business  rests  on  credit,  and  it  exists 
through  integrity.  It  is  therefore  not  simply  a  sys- 
tem of  piracy.  Doubtless  the  competitive  system  has 
given  rise  to  many  evils,  but  it  has  also  taught  les- 
sons of  fidelity,  honor,  thrift,  and  industry.  This  is 
not  intended  as  a  defense  of  the  competitive  system. 
It  is  simply  a  reply  to  those  who  see  only  the  evil, 
and  are  mole-eyed  to  the  good  there  may  be  in  that 
system.  Competition  may  in  tim.e  give  place  to  a 
great  system  of  cooperation.  Already  the  state  and 
the  municipality  in  many  places  are  taking  over  the 
electric  light,  gas,  water,  telephone,  and  transporta- 
tion, and  it  seems  probable  that  public  utilities  will 
more  and  more  pass  out  of  the  hands  of  private  in- 
terests and  become  the  property  of  the  state. 

It  is  easy  for  men  who  exaggerate  the  evils  of  the 
class  struggle  and  of  the  competitive  system  lightly 
to  dismiss  the  claims  of  brotherhood  on  the  ground 
that  it  is  not  practicable  in  existing  society.  But  let 
it  be  remembered  that  it  was  in  one  of  the  most 
evil  ages  in  the  world's  history  that  Jesus  said  to 
the  disciples  and  to  the  multitudes,  "  One  is  your 
Teacher,  and  all  ye  are  brethren.''  Thr  call  to-day  is 
for  men  who  will  risk  their  money,  and  perhaps 
their  reputations,  in  conducting  their  factories,  mills, 
and  shops  on  the  basis  of  brotherhood.     Such  an 


M. 


)^i'mt^^:!:r:^^^^i 


IS?. 


I 


11 


4^)         THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OI-  TJIE  LORDS  I'KAVER 

altruistic  venture  would  mean  far  more  for  the 
Christianizing  of  society  and  the  extension  of  the 
kingdom  of  God  than  Carnegie's  attempt  to  give 
away  his  millions  during  his  lifetime.  The  world 
needs  libraries,  but  it  needs  more  the  quickening 
touch  of  brotherhood  expressed  in  industrial  rela- 
tions. 

Brotherhood  and  the  Employer 

It  may  h-  frankly  admitted  that  so  far  as  the  purely 
sentimental  side  of  relationship  between  employer 
and  employee  is  concerned,  changes  in  the  industrial 
system  have  made  it  increasingly  difficult  to  keep 
alive  the  sense  of  brotherhood.    When  an  employer 
works  side  by  side  with  his  men,  knows  them  by 
name,  and  something  of  their  families  and  circum- 
stances, there  is  established  that  human  touch  which 
makes  for  fraternity.     But  in  these  days  of  huge 
combinations  of   capital,    employing   thousands   of 
men,  when  the  largest  stockholder  frequently  lives 
hundreds  of  miles  away  from  the  actual  place  of 
production,  and  is  ignorant,  not  only  of  the  men  who 
toil,  but  also  of  the  business  itself,  the  old  fraternal 
relations  almost  completely  disappear,  and  the  out- 
stretched hand,  the  loan  or  gift  of  money  in  some 
crisis  in  the  life  of  the  working  man,  all  of  these 
things  which  break  down  the  barriers  of  class  feel- 
ing, are  no  longer  possible. 

It  is  well  to  remember,  however,  that  while  con- 
solidation has  been  carried  far,  there  remain  tens 


THE    SOCIAL    IDEAL   OF    i:ROTHliKllO(jU 


47 


of  thousands  of  smaller  concerns  where  the  intimate 
relation  still  exists,  and  in  the  case  of  the  others 
fraternity  is  still  possible,  even  though  the  senti- 
mental side  may  be  eliminated.  But  there  are  two 
things  which  are  largely  rcspr>nsible  for  the  fric- 
tion between  capital  and  labor,  and  to  each  of 
diese  two  things  the  principle  of  brotherhood  must 
be  applied  if  we  arc  to  have  peace  in  the  industrial 
world. 

Wages 

First,  and  most  important,  is  the  f|uestion  of 
wages.  This  is  one  of  the  four  forces  which  regulate 
price,  vh.,  rent,  interest,  profit,  and  wages.  While 
there  are  many  aspects  to  the  problem  of  wages, 
we  are  to  consider  it  from  the  Christian  principle  of 
brotherhood.  How  much  shall  I  pay  the  men  who 
work  in  my  mill  or  my  shop?  One  answer  is  that 
the  wage  will  be  determined  solely  by  the  law  of 
supply  and  demand.  The  employer  who  takes  that 
position  will  buy  his  labor  in  the  cheapest  market, 
regardless  of  the  question  whether  the  wage  paid 
will  give  to  the  wage-earner  a  decent  livelihood. 
That  may  possibly  be  good  business  economy,  but  it 
is  bad  Christian  ethics.  It  is  also  one  of  the  most 
fruitful  causes  of  economic  discontent.  If  we  ap- 
proach the  question  from  the  Christian  standpoint, 
the  answer  is  that  the  wage  is  to  be  determined  by 
the  wage  we  would  pay  a  brother.  From  that  point 
of  view  various  organizations  which  are  seeking  to 


\:i 


48         THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OK  THE  LORDS  PRAYER 

solve  the  industrial  problem  on  the  basis  of  brother- 
hood  have  deduced  and  adopted  the  principle  of  '•  a 

iving  wage  as  a  minimum  in  every  industry,  and 
the  highest  wage  that  any  industry  can  afford  "  If 
an  industry  cannot  afford  to  pay  such  a  wage  to 
honest,  sober,  and  industrious  men,  it  has  no  right 
to  exist.  ** 

Hours  of  Labor 

Connected  closely  with  the  question  of  wages  is 
the  other  vexed  problem  of  hours  of  labor.    The  evil 
effects  of  long  hours  of  labor  upon  the  body  and 
nimd  of  the  working  man  are  now  generally  recog, 
nized.    Shorter  hours  in  many  cases  has  led  to  an 
increased  production,  for  men  with  strong,  healthv 
bodies  can  work  more  effectively  than  the  languid, 
ired  workman  whose  vital  energies  are  drained  by 
long  and  exhausting  hours  of  toil;  and  there  has 
always  been  a  marked   improvement  in  sanitary 
social,  and  moral  relations.     It  is  not  the  business 

minl^H    ^      ''/,\"  '''^'  °^  ^^^^^'  ^'  '^  deter- 
mine the  hours  of  labor.    She  does  not  possess  the 

necessary  expert  economic  wisdom  to  assume  that 

role;  but  the  church,  if  she  be  true  to  her  Master 

IS  under  an  obligation  to  urge  upon  employers  of 

abor  the  necessity  of  dealing  with  this  subject  from 

he  standpoint  of  brotherhood.     Hence  several  re- 

.g.ous  denominations  have  adopted  as  a  part  of 

their  social  program  the  proposition  of  '•  the  gradua 

and  reasonable  reduction  of  hours  of  labor^S  the 


iSM^f'i^r'^rLi^^rj'^Kiii 


THE   SOCIAL   IDEAL   OF   BROTHERHOOD  49 

lowest  practical  point,  and  that  degree  of  leisure  for 
all  which  is  a  condition  of  the  highest  human  life  " 
"  Business  men  must  learn  in  all  seriousness  and 
perfect  good  faitli  to  consider  their  various  forms 
of  business  activity  as  forms  of  public  service,"  to 
which  the  Cliristian  standard  shall  apply. 

Modern  industrial  conditions  are  a  challenge  to 
Christian  employers  of  labor  to  put  into  operation 
the  prmciple  of  brotherhood,  and  thus  do  a  work 
that  no  preacher  or  writer  on  social  problems  can 
accomplish,  in  extending  the  kingdom  of  God  on 
earth  and  bringing  in  an  era  of  justice,  love,  peace 
and  fraternity. 

"  I  do  not  believe  that  any  more  charitable,  any 
more  divme  use  of  money  can  be  thought  of  than 
that  which  IS  involved  in  the  furnishing  of  honest  and 
healthful  work,  and  in  the  manifestation,  through 
the  friendships  which  associations  in  work  make 
possible,  of  the  true  spirit  of  brotherly  love     The 
man  who  can  gather  men  about  him  in  some  pro- 
ductive  industry,  and  can  thus  enable  them  by  their 
own  labor  to  earn  a  decent  livelihood,  and  can  fill  all 
his  relations  with  them  with  the  Spirit  of  Christ 
making  it  plain  to  them  that  he  is  studying  to  be- 
friend them  and  help  them  in  every  possible  wav 
IS  doing  quite  as  much,  I  think,  to  realize  God's  pur-! 
pose  with  respect  to  property,  and  to  bring  heaven 
to  earth  as  if  he  were  founding  an  asylum,  or  en- 
dowing a  tract  society."  ^ 

1  Washington  Gladden,  "  Ruling  Ideas  of  the  Present  Age." 


iSt 


50         THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  Ol  THE  LOKD  .-  rKAYER 


A 

■  \ 


I  t 


The  Employee 

fti  Relation  to  the  Employer 

The  responsibility  of  brotherhood  does  not  rest 
upon  the  employer  alone.  The  law  of  brotherhootl 
as  enunciated  by  Jesus  was  not  intcndc<l  to  be 
limited  to  one  group  in  society.  If  tlie  employer 
is  my  brother,  it  means  tliat  1  must  consider  his 
interests,  that  I  must  not  do  shoddy  work,  nor  put 
in  time  when  his  eyes  are  not  fastened  upon  me.  It 
means  that  in  a  dispute  over  wages,  or  hours  of 
labor  (for  even  brothers  will  have  their  misunder- 
standings), I  must  not  attempt  to  gain  my  point  by 
destroying  his  property,  or  by  letting  loose  upon 
him  the  forces  of  anarchy.  There  can  be  no  doubt 
that  if  this  spirit  of  brotherhood  were  more  mani- 
fest, not  only  would  many  costly  and  fruitless 
strikes  be  avoided,  but  improved  material  conditions 
for  both  classes  would  be  developed. 

In  Relation  to  the  Kon-nnion  Man 

Not  only  the  employer,  but  also  the  non-union 
man  is  to  be  recognized  as  a  brother.  This  is  a  hard 
saying  in  the  ears  of  organized  labor.  But  brother- 
hood cannot  make  an  exception  of  any  one  class. 
The  non-union  man  may  be  an  enemy  of  his  class. 
It  may  be  lack  of  economic  wisdom,  or  the  pressure 
of  economic  necessity,  that  has  forced  him  into  the 
position  he  occupies.  But  however  short-sighted  he 
may  be,  he  is  a  brother  man.     If  his  conversion  is 


Tllli    SOCIAL    U)i:.\L    OF    I'.KOTUKRIKHMi 


51 


necessary  to  the  success  of  the  labor  movement,  it 
must  be  effected,  not  witli  a  chib,  nor  with  a  brick, 
nor  by  intimidation,  but  by  education. 


No  Real  Brotherhood  without  Divine  Fatherhood 

Hrotherhood  is  a  very  popular  theme;  but  it  is 
easier  to  discuss  it  than  to  put  it  into  practice.     It 
was  said  by  the  great  Teaeber  and  i:xcmi)lifier  of 
brotherhood  that  '"  man  cannot  live  by  bread  alone." 
Industrial  problems  will  never  be  solved  bv  mere 
bread-and-butter  theories.     Let  us  not  forget  that 
there  can  be  no  real  en.luring  sense  of  brotherhood 
\yithout  a  belief  in  divine  Fatherhood.    Dr.  Samuel 
Smith,  in  bis  Iwok-.  "  The  Industrial  Conflict,"  after 
a  careful  first-hand  study  of  the  demands  of  labor 
leaders  and  employers  of  labor,  comes  to  this  con- 
clusion—a conclusion  which  commends  itself  to  the 
writer:  "The  doctrine  of  the  brotherhood  of  man 
is  a  beautiful  dream,  but  it  remains   forever  the 
baseless  fabric  of  a  dream,  unless  it  is  founded  upon 
the  deepest  of  all  realities,  the  Fatherhood  of  God. 
To    better    our    social    conditions    we    need    close 
thought,  careful  study,  a  diligent  application  of  the 
best  methods,  but  at  the  last  without  faith  in  the 
eternal  foundations  .  .  .  there  can  be  no  f^nal  adjust- 
ment of  social  difficulties,  and  all  earthly  wisdom 
is  but  as  sounding  brass  and  clanging  cymbals." 

That   to-tlay   new  emphasis   is   being  placed   on 
brotherhood  as  a  solvent  of  the  class  struggle  is  one 


M 


r-"i 


ii 


(L 


52         THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORDS  PRAYER 

of  the  most  hopeful  signs  of  the  times.  It  would  be 
well  if  we  would  write  over  the  portals  of  our 
churches  and  labor  temples : 

ONE  IS  YOUR  FATHER,  WHO  IS  IN   HEAVEN, 
AND  ALL  YE  ARE  BRETHREN. 


THE  IDEAL  SOCIAL  AND  RELIGIOUS 
ORDER 


"  ®I|5  femgboOT  comt " 

Ix  this  petition  Jesus  gives  us  a  picture  of  the 

ideal  social  and  reHgious  order.    The  term  kingdom 

ij  is  one  of  the  key-words  of  the  Gospels.     It  is  a 

word  that  is  continually  upon  the  lips  of  our  Lord. 

He  began  his  public  ministry  with  the  proclamation : 

"  The  kingd       of  heaven  is  at  hand ;  repent,  and 

believe  the  gospel."    Ho  declared  that  the  poor  are 

blessed,  for  theirs  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven.     He 

warns  a  certain  man  not  to  look  back,  lest  he  should 

not  be  fit  for  the  kingdom.    In  the  parables  of  the 

Hid  Treasure  and  the  Pearl  of  Great  Price,  he 

illustrates  the  priceless  value  of  membership  in  the 

kingdom.     FTe  encourages  a  certain  man  with  the 

statement  that  he  is  not  far  from  the  kingdom.    At 

the  Last  Supper  he  informs  his  disciples  that  he  will 

not  again  drink  of  the  fruit  of  the  vine  until  that 

day  when  he  shall  drink  it  new  wilth  them  in  the 

Father's  kingdom.     And   when  a  certain   disciple 

said,  "  Lord,  teach  us  to  pray,"  he  answered,  "  When 

ye  pray,  say.  Father,  hallowed  be  thy  name,  thy 

53 


t  i 


54        THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORd's  PRAYER 

kingdom  come."  In  short,  there  are  over  one  hun- 
dred passages  in  the  Gospels  which  contain  refer- 
ences to  the  kingdom. 

The  Kingdom  of  God 

The  Great  Social  Hope  of  the  Jezvish  Nation 

Jesus  did  not  originate  the  idea  of  the  kingdom 
of  God.    Lor  centuries  it  had  been  the  great  social 
hope  of  the  Jewish  nation.     In  making  the  idea 
central  in  his  teaching.  Jesus  joined  hands  with  the 
prophets       They    had    strengthened    the    fainting 
hearts  of  their  fellow  countrymen  with  the  hope  that 
Jehovah  would  deliver  Israel  and  make  all  nations 
subject  to  her.     The  Messianic  hope  took  on  new 
forms  under  different  prophets.     As  the  political 
fortunes  of  the  chosen  people  became  increasingly 
desperate,  more  emphasis  was  laid  upon  the  super- 
natural power  that  was  to  be  exercised  in  bringing 
about  the  new  age  and  order. 

After  the  return  from  the  BabNlonian  exile  a  new 
Judaism  arose,  in  which  we  find  the  following  ele- 
ments of  later  belief:    (i)   Jehovah  would  estab- 
lish the  Jewish  nation  in  indescribable  glory ;  (2)  the 
head  of  the  kingdom  would  be  a  legitimate  monarch 
a  son  of  David ;  (3)  Jehovah  would  judge  the  world' 
an<l  punisli  with  indescribable  suffering  the  enemies 
of  his  chosen  nation;  (4)  the  dead  would  rise-a 
belief  associated  witli  the  restoration  of  Israel.^ 

'  .Shailcr   Mathews,  "  The   Messianic  Hope." 


-^!!f>ipT7^W:^'^^--- 


.ir.7:*?T-i*SK-'F-j,.iJ|«3(.f:vp 


THE    IDEAL   SOCIAL   AND   RELIGIOUS   ORDER 


00 


It  IS  true  tliat  among  the  masses  of  the  people 
the  hope  was  largely  revolutionary.  When  men  are 
hvmg  m  misery  and  poverty,  with  the  hand  of  op- 
pression clutching  at  their  throats,  thev  find  it  dif- 
hctilt  to  wait  the  good  pleasure  of  God  in  bringing 
about  deliverance.  It  was  the  Zealots,  the  men  who 
were  trying  to  force  the  hand  of  the  Almighty,  that 
led  to  the  war  of  A.  D.  66-70,  the  destruction  of 
Jerusalem,  and  the  extinction  of  the  Jewish  state. 

As  Preached  by  John  the  Baptist 

Under  the  preaching  of  John  the  Baptist  there 
was  a  revival  of  interest  in  the  Messianic  hope. 
1  he  burden  of  his  preaching  was  the  nearness  of  the 
kingdom  of  God.    The  time  was  so  ripe  that  already 
the  axe  was  lying  at  the  root  of  the  tree.    A  great 
sifting  period  was  just  before  the  people.    He  took 
the  advanced  ground,  that  Abrahamic  descent  was 
not  sufficient  to  entitle  one  to  the  glories  and  privi- 
leges of  the  Messianic  kingdom.     There  must  be 
repentance  and  changed  conduct  as  a  primary  con- 
dition of  forgiveness.     How  deeply  interested  the 
tiation  was  m  his  proclamation  concerning  the  king- 
dom IS  evident  in  the  fact  that  great  multitudes  fol 
lowed  him  out  into  the  wilderness  and  were  bapti/ed 
in  the  Jordan,  confessing  their  sins. 

r  u'''^  ^V,''''  '"  ^^^^'Pt'"g  J^aptism  at  the  hands  of 
John  the  Baptist,  allied  himself  with  this  new  Mes- 
sianic movement  which  had  been  inaugurated  by  the 
wilderness  prophet.     He  took  up  the  crv  that  ha.I 


RTS  x.miJiWiTatawra 


.  et»;«iBi  issB 


U  1 


Ir 


56         THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD's  PRAYER 

been  heard  along  the  fords  of  the  Jordan,  "The 
kingdom  of  God  is  at  hand,  repent,"  but  he  added 
to  Jt  one  significant  phrase,  "  Believe  the  good  news  " 
(Mark  I  ;  15).  .Matthew  tells  us  that  Jesus  went 
about  all  Galilee,  teaching  in  their  synagogues,  and 
preaching  the  gospel  of  the  kingdom. 

A  Point  of  Contact  x'ith  the  People 

Jesus  found  in  the  concept  of  the  kingdom  a  point 
of  contact  with  the  people  of  his  day,  a  medium 
through  whicii  he  could  best  convey  his  religious 
and  social  message.     By  adopting  the  Messianic 
concept,  Jesus  was  able  to  arouse  at  once  the  in- 
terest of  the  peoph  and  through  it  to  bring  home  to 
their  hearts  and  consciences  his  great  teaching  con- 
cerning God  and  man,  sin  and  redemption,  the  in- 
dividual and  his  environment.    Harnack  has  said  that 
*'  Christianity  began  as  an  apocalyptic  eschatological 
message."    That  is  certainly  an  overstatement.    The 
form  only  is  Messianic.     If  Jesus  had  lived  in  a 
Greek  city,  he  could  have  translated  his  message  just 
as  well  through  the  medium  of  Greek  philosophy. 
If  there  had  been  nothing  more  in  the  message  of 
Jesus  than  Messianism,  it  would  never  have  crossed 
the  boundary  of  the  Mediterranean,  and  Christianity 
long  since  would  have  perished  as  one  among  many 
other  hopeless  little  sects  of  Judaism. 

That  is  not  to  say  that  there  were  no  permanent 
elements  of  value  in  Jewish  eschatology.  There 
were,  and  some  of  them  were  incorporated  into 


\f- 


s 


Tin-     IDICAL    SOCIAL    AND   RELIGIOUS   ORDER 

as  vital  elements  of  great  value.     J 


Christian  it  \ 


57 


ut 


here  were  other  conceptions  so  foreign  to  the 
thought  ot  to-day  as  to  nuke  tiieni  impossible  of 
general  acceptation.  ()„e  of  the  best  evidences  of 
the  non-essential  character  of  Messianism  is  the 
ease  with  which  C'hristianity  has  quietly  pushed  it 
into  the  background  without  any  sacrifice  of  loyalty 
to  Christ.  ^     •' 

Misconceptions  Corrected 

The  Kingdom  Not  Merely  Political  or  Materialistic 
When  Jesus  use<l  the  term  kingdom  he  did  not 
have  m  mind  a  mere  political  kingdom  or  material- 
'Stic  paradise.    The  great  mass  of  his  fellow  coun- 
trymen   were  eagerly  looking  forward  to  such  a 
kingdom.     For  centuries,  even  in  the  darkest  days 
of  tlieir  troubled   history,  the  hopes  of  the  pious 
and  the  patriotic  had  leaped  forward  to  a  world- 
conquering  Jewish   state,   with  Jerusalem   as  the 
capital  of  the  world,  and  Judea  giving  the  law  to 
the  nations.    There  is  no  doubt  that  the  disciples  of 
Jesus  shared  in  this  dream  of  a  national  deliverance 
but_  to  what  extent  their  Messianic  hopes  colored 
their  interpretation  of  the  words  of  Jesus  concern- 
ing the  kingdom  is  a  prol,Iem  that  biblical  science 
has  not  yet  been  able  to  solve.    We  know  that  even 
after  the  resurrection,  one  of  the  first  questions  put 
hy  the  disciples  to  our  Lord  was  the  old  Messianic 
finest, on.  -  Wilt  thou  at  this  time  restore  the  king- 
dom to  Israel ?  "  ^ 

E 


58 


■niK  SOC/.\L  IDKAI.S  OF  1  UK  I.OKd's  I'R WKU 


At  the  very  beginning  of  his  ministry  Jesus  re- 
jected tlie  idea  of  a  pohtical  kingdom  to  be  brought 
in  either  by  revolutionary  propaganda  or  by  super- 
natural intervention.     As  he  kept  his  lonely  vigil 
in  the  wilderness,  he  faced  the  great  questions :  How 
shall  the  kingdoms  of  this  world  be  made  the  king- 
doms  of   God?     By   what   sign   shall    I   conquer? 
What  methods  shall  I  adopt  in  my  Messianic  work? 
It  was  in  connection  v/Ith  these  questions  that  temp- 
tation assailed  him.     Without  entering  into  a  de- 
tailed interprctaUon  of  the  three  temptations  that 
came  to  him.  it  is  sufficient  to  state  that  there  and 
then  Jesus  discarded  both  the  Pharisaic  idea  of  a 
kingdom  to  be  usiiered  in  by  signs  and  wonders, 
and  the  popular  conception  of  a  kingdom  that  was  to 
come  through  the  might  of  armies  and  din  of  battles 
That  Jesus  liad  no  idea  of  establishing  a  political 
kingdom  ,s  evident  from  that  scene  in  his  history 
wluch    >s   sometimes   referred   to  as   the  crisis  at 
Capernaum.    The  multitudes,  aroused  to  enthusiasm 
by  the  feeding  of  the  five  thousand,  sought  to  make 
him  a  king ;  that  is.  to  force  him  into  an  insurrection- 
ary movement  against  the  Romans.    But  Jesus  set  his 
face  against  tliem.    We  have  in  the  Fourth  Gospel 
the  reply  of  Jesus  to  the  demands  of  the  nmltitude 
t  was  so  unsatisfactory  that  there  followed  imme- 
-  lately  the  exodus  of  that  motley  multitude,  whose 
dream  of  a  malerialistic  parach'se  of  loaves  and  fishes 
had  been  so  rudely  shattererl.  (John  6  :  2^-70  ) 
It  would  be  easy  to  multiply  passages  in  support 


'}*i 


.'^> 


THE    IDEAL    SUCf.M.    and   RELIGIOUS   (,RDKr< 


5'> 


of  the  contention  that  the  kingdon.  our  Lord  had  in 
mmd  was  not  poHtical,  but  enough  has  been  written 
to  convince  us  that,  when  he  bade  the  disciples  pray 
Thy  kingdom  come,"  he  was  not  thinking  of  such 
a  Kingdom  as  existed  in  Palestine  in  the  davs  of 
i)avid  and  Solomon.  ^.=>  ui 

The  Kingdom  Not  the  Heaven  of  Christianity 

The  kingdon.  of  heaven  is  not  a  religious  and 
social  Utopia  to  be  set  up  in  the  world  btyond  the 
skies.     Study  the  histo^  of  the  Christian' church 
and  you  vvdl  discover  that  it  w^as  not  long  before 
men  lost  all  hope  of  the  kingdom  of  God  on  earTh 

earth  but  in  heaven.    The  world  is  past  redemption  ; 
social  life  IS  debasing,  politics  is  cornipting.  mar- 
riage IS  degrading;  the  heart  of  the  world  is  rotten  • 
hmnan  nature  is  incurably  evil;  humanity  is  on  a 
V  eck;  the  best  we  can  do  is   to  withdraw  our- 
selves  from  human   interests,  and   fast  and  prav 
and  prepare  ourselves  for  the  kingdom  in  heaven'"' 
Strangely  enough,  they  still  kept  on  praying,  "  Thy 
kingdom  come ;  thy  will  be  done,  as  in  heaven,  so  on 

JntVll'V"",^""'^^''  '"  '^'  ^^"P*"^^«  ^^hich 
omt  to  the  kingdom  as  having  its  consummation  in 

he  future  cannot  be  denied.    In  the  parable  of  the 

1  ounds  the  thought  is  that  the  kingdom  in  its  fullest 

sense  is   not  to  come   immediatelv.   but   is   to   be 

hastened  by  the  faithfulness  of  the  disciples 


(k)      the  social  ideals  of  the  lord's  prayer 

111  the  parables  of  the  Mustard  Seed  and  the 
Leaven  Jesus  sets  before  the  disciples  the  twofold 
method  of  development  of  the  kingdom  of  God. 
In  the  first  parable  he  illustrates  the  extensive  growth 
of  the  kingdom,  and  in  the  second  the  intensive  de- 
velopment. The  first  is  a  prophecy  that  the  time 
will  come  when  the  kingdom  of  God  is  to  embrace 
a  wider  area  and  include  a  greater  number  of 
people  than  Alexander  the  Great  or  the  Caesars  ever 
dreamed  of.  The  second  is  a  prophecy  of  the 
transforming  and  leavening  influences  of  the  king- 
dom upon  every  phase  of  life.  These  parables  con- 
tradict the  idea  that  the  world  is  going  from  bad  to 
worse,  hastening  to  some  final  catastrophe.  Like  the 
mustard-seed,  it  begins  small,  but  it  is  to  grow  until 
it  becomes  a  great  tree.  Like  the  leaven  which  the 
woman  casts  into  the  meal,  it  is  to  work  silently, 
powerfully,  until  the  whole  social  order  is  leavened. 
(Matt.  13  :  31-33.)  Now,  if  the  kingdom  is  to 
grow  and  transform  life,  of  a  certainty  it  must 
already  exist  on  earth. 

The  Kingdom  Not  Simply  Subjective 

A  third  misconception  of  the  kingdom  that  might 
properly  be  referred  to  in  passing  is  the  view  that 
the  kingdom  is  a  subjective  state  of  the  individual. 
The  passage  usually  quotec  in  support  of  this  con- 
tention is  found  in  Luke  17  :  2of. :  "  And  being 
asked  by  the  Pharisees,  when  the  kingdom  of  God 
Cometh,  he  answered  them  and  said.  The  kingdom 


^m^:^¥^mim^W' 


■^^itmetl^^T-^ 


'  i 


II 


THE   IDEAL   SOCIAL   AXD   RELIGIOUS   ORDER        C<[ 

of  God  Cometh  not  with  observation:  neither  shall 
they  say,  Lo  here!  or,  lo  there!   for  liehold,  the 
kingdom  of  God  is  within  you."    In  the  American 
Revised  Version,  as  well  as  in  the  English  Revised, 
the  alternative  reading  is,  "  the  kingdom  of  God  is  in 
the  midst  of  you."    The  alternative  reading  is  pref- 
erable for  two  reasons:   (i)   Because  the  idea  of 
the  kingdom  as  a  purely  subjective  state  is  foreign 
to  the  thought  of  Jesus,  and  (2)  because  Jesus  was 
not  likely  to  tell  the  Pharisees  who  came  tempting 
him  and  were  already  plotting  against  his  life  that 
the  kingdom  of  God  was  within  them.    The  Phar- 
isees, with  their  wild  dream  of  a  kingdom  coming 
out  of  the  clouds,  with  the  moon  turning  into  blood, 
the  stars  falling  from  their  courses,  and  the  right- 
eous Jews  rising  from  their  graves,  were  blind  to 
the  kingdom  of  God  already  growing  up  around 
them. 


The  Kingdom  in  the  Thought  of  Jesus 

In  discussing  the  misconceptions  of  the  kingdom, 
some  light  has  been  thrown  on  Jesus'  view  of  the 
new  order  that  he  came  to  establish.  We  are  now 
ready  for  a  more  positive  treatment  of  this  great 
thought  which  was  so  central  in  all  his  teachings. 

The  Kingdom  Present 

That  Jesus  conceived  of  the  kingdom  as  already 
existing  seems  to  be  certain.     As  has  been  noted, 


Kl 


(>2         1  lll£  SOCIAL  lUliALS  OK  TMli  LOKD's  PRAYER 

that  fact  is  implied  in  the  parables  of  the  xMustard 
Seed  and  the  Leaven.     In  the  little  group  of  dis- 
ciples, who  had  accepted  the  gospel  and  were  living 
the  life  of  brotherhood,  he  saw  the  nucleus  of  the 
new  social  order.    John  the  Baptist  had  announced 
the  kingdom  as  near  at  hand,  but  to  Jesus  it  was 
already  present.     As  he  sees  the  good  seed  of  the 
kingdom  springmg  up  and  bearing  fruit  in  the  hearts 
of  that  little  company  who  had  responded  to  his 
message,  he  declares  that,  great  though  John  the 
Baptist  was,  he  was   inferior  to  one  who  is  but 
little  in  the  kingdom  of  God.  (Matt,  ii  :  n.)    They 
belonged  to  the  new  order ;  John  the  Baptist  to  the 
old. 

Triumphs  in  the  Future 

But  while  the  kingdom  is  already  present,  its  great 
triumphs  are  to  be  in  the  future.  Jesus  forecasts 
tliat  even  within  the  generation  there  is  to  be  a 
wide-spread  growth  of  the  kingdom.  ( Matt.  8  :  ii.) 
To  what  extent  he  shared  in  the  belief  that  by  some 
miraculous  display  of  power  God  would  suddenly 
usher  in  the  kingdom  in  its  fulness,  it  is  difficult  to 
say.  That  there  are  passages  which  seem  to  point 
to  salvation  by  catastroj)he  can  hardly  bo  denied, 
l^ut  may  this  not  be  a  part  of  his  inheritance  from 
the  past,  non-essential  in  his  message,  and  perhaps 
colored  by  tlie  Messianic  hopes  of  his  reporters? 
Wliile  the  problem  is  by  no  means  settled,  the  weight 
of  evidence  seems  to  be  in  favor  of  the  view  that 


TIIK    IDLAL    SOCI  •  I,    AND   KELIoMjL.-   OKUER        O3 

Jesus  regarded  the  kingdom  as  already  present,  but 
to  have  its  complete  reaHzation  in  the  future  by  a 
process  of  gradual  and  unobtrusive  growth. 

The  Kingdom  Spiritual 

The  kingdom  established  by  Je^us  was  spiritual  in 
its  nature.     He  lay-  down  three  conditions  of  mem- 
bership.   The  first  is  receptivity.    "  Whosoever  shall 
not  receive  the  kingdom  of  God  as  a  little  chikl 
shall  in  no  wise  enter  therein  '   (Mark   lo  :  15). 
The  second  is  repentance.    Jesus  l>egan  his  ministry 
with  the  pr<^clamation,  "  Rei)ent,   for  the  kingdom 
of  God  is  at  hand."    Without  rei)entanc('  men  rr.ust 
perish.    So  important  is  repentance,  as  a  prerequisite 
of  entrance  into  the  kingdom,  that  there  is  joy  in 
the  presence  of  the  angeis  of  God  over  one  sinner 
that  repenteth.  ( Luke  1 5  :   10.)    The  third  condition 
is  faith.   (Mark  i  :  15;  Luke  7  :  50.)     The  kir.^^- 
dom  of  God  is  a  society  of  renewed  men  who  have 
experienced  the  power  of  God  in  their  lives.     The 
natural  man  cannot  enter  into  that  kingdom.     ITc 
must  be  born  from  above.    (John  3  :  3.)      In  the 
Sermon  on  the  Mount  Jesus  discusses  the  righteous- 
ness of  the  kingdom.    This  riglitcousness  is  seated 
in  the  heart,  and  includes  humility  of  spirit,  puritv 
of  heart,  hunger  after  righteou-ness.  and  a  willing- 
ness to  do  the  will  of  the  Father  in  licaven.     It  i> 
in  brief  the  reign  of  God  in  human  lives,  and  mani- 
fests itself  in  love  to  God  and  love  to  man.  (    'at- 
thcw  5  to  8.) 


ll^» 


\tf>^.; 


64         THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OU  THE  LORD's  PRAVEK 


[hi 

i 


t 


1^. 


The  Kingdom  Includes  All  Life 

But  while  the  kingdom  is  spiritual,  its  scope  in- 
cludes all  life.  It  begins  with  the  individual,  but  it 
works  outward.  It  first  transforms  mdividuals,  in 
order  that  they  may  transform  society.  It  con- 
templates the  renewal  of  every  department  of  human 
activit>  marriage,  the  family,  the  state,  commerce, 
and  industry. 

Jesus  was  not  indififerent  to  the  masses  who  were 
ground  under  the  iron  heel  of  oppression.     He  re- 
fused to  lead  an  insurrectionary  movement,  because 
the  kingdom  was  not  to  come  through  force,  but 
through  the  triumph  of  spiritual  ideals.    The  down- 
trodden children  of  earth  will  come  into  their  own 
as  men  come  under  the  influence  of  the  ideals  of 
the  kingdom.     When  the  kingdom  is   fully  come, 
there  will  be  no  poverty,  no  social  misery,  no  need 
to  worry  over  what  to  eat  or  drink,  or  wherewithal 
to  be  clothed.     Meanwhile  men  are  to  seek  first 
the  kingdom  of  God,  and  all  these  things  will  be 
added  to  them. 

Summary  and  Conclusion 

Ic  has  been  the  purpose  of  this  chapter  to  arrive 
at  an  interpretation  of  the  kingdom  idea  in  the 
thought  of  Jesus.  For  hundreds  of  years  it  had 
been  the  great  social  and  religious  hope  of  the  Jew- 
ish people.    He  took  that  term  in  common  use  in  all 


wi^^m^^^mm 


Tril-    IDEAL    SOCIAL    AND    RELIGIOUS   ORDEK         ()  = 


circles  of  Jewish  orthodoxy  and  gave  it  a  new 
content,  lie  read  into  it  new  social  and  religious 
values. 

While  Jesus  nowhere  formally  defines  the  king- 
dom, it  seems  to  be  clear  that  he  thought  of  it  as  the 
reign  of  (iod  in  human  lives.  But  the  kingdom  is 
not  simply  abstract;  it  is  concrete  as  well.  Ii  is  a 
society  of  renewed  men  and  women  who  have  ac- 
cepted God  as  their  I-'aiher,  who  live  as  brothers  with 
all  men,  and  who  are  seeking  to  put  into  practical 
operation  in  all  the  relationships  of  life  the  great 
IM-inciples  of  the  kingdom.  If  we  have  but  a  co!i- 
fused  or  narrow  conception  of  the  kingdom,  we  shall 
miss  the  breadth  of  vision,  the  mora!  and  spiritual 
grandeur  of  that  petition  he  taught  the  disciples 
so  long  ago,  "  Thy  kingdom  come." 

'*  Jesus  employed  the  phrase  kingdom  of  God,  or 
of  heaven,  to  indicate  that  perfect  order  of  things 
which  he  was  alwut  to  establish,  in  which  all  those 
of  every  nation  who  should  believe  on  him  were  to 
be  gathered  together  into  one  society,  dedicated  and 
intimately  united  to  God.  and  made  partakers  of 
eternal  salvation."  - 

"The  kingdom  of  Go<l  is  the  reign  of  God.  of 
his  purposes,  of  his  ideals,  of  his  sp.  rit  in  the  lives 
of  men.  and  in  the  relationships  and  institutions  of 
the  world.  It  is  the  world  itself  brought  into  har- 
mony with  God's  will ;  not  a  dualism  of  two  king- 

-  Thayer,   '•  GrtckEiiglish   Lexicon   of  the   New  Testament,"   p.   y;. 


-.-.     'i 


I    i 
I    ( 


66         THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORDS  PRAYER 

doms,  but  one  kingdom  only — God's  world  and 
ours — controlled  by  the  spirit  of  Christ."  ^ 

"  The  kingdom  of  God  is  the  reign  of  God  in 
man,  and  over  man,  and  through  man.  It  compre- 
hends the  whole  life  of  man,  and  makes  provision 
for  all  his  needs.  It  is  a  society  of  men  who  do 
God's  will  and  fulfil  his  righteousness.  .  .  It  is  a 
gfreat  social  synthesis  which  includes  the  whole  life 
of  man,  spiritual,  moral,  mental,  and  physical;  its 
field  of  manifestation  is  man's  personal,  family,  so- 
cial, political,  and  industria'  relations;  it  finds  its 
consummation,  so  far  as  this  world  is  concerned,  in 
a  righteous  and  brotherly  society  on  earth."  * 

"  The  kingdom  of  God  is  the  joyous  and  righteous 
union  of  those  who  live  as  brothers  with  one  an- 
other, because  of  their  common  faith  in  God  as  their 
Father,  and  their  subjection  to  his  rule  of  love."  = 

^  Prof.  A.  C.  'vfeGiffert,  "  Modern  Sermons,"  Vol.  VL  p.   loo. 

♦  n.-itten,  '•  The   Social  Task  of  Christianity." 

^  Shaikr  Mathew.s,   "  IJiblical  World,"  December,  i9r4,  p.  437. 


VI 


THE  IDEAL  OF  THE  KIXGDOM 

**  ^I|o  feill  be  bone,  aa  in  heaben,  so  on  earti]  " 

Jesus  couples  with  the  prayer,  "Thy  kingdom 
come,"  the  petition,  "  Thy  will  be  done,  as  in  heaven, 
so  on  earth."  The  second  clause  is  more  specific, 
and  explains  the  first.  In  the  Sermon  on  the  Alount 
Jesus  sets  before  the  members  of  tlie  kingdom  the 
goal  to  l>e  reached  in  their  individual  lives;  it  is 
the  high  ideal  of  moral  perfection.  (Matt.  5  :  48.) 
Here  he  gives  us  the  ideal  of  the  kingdom.  It  is 
nothing  less  than  such  a  transfonnation  of  society 
that  the  will  of  God  will  be  done  on  earth  as  it  is 
in  heaven. 

The  Idealism  of  the  Prayer 

The  petition  inspires  us  with  its  magnificent 
idealism. 

//  World  Missionary  Program 

It  gives  us  a  world  missionary  program.  \Vc  get 
a  vision  of  «,]od's  kingdom  coming,  not  .  nly  in  Amer- 
ica and  Europe,  but  also  in  Africa,  in  Asia,  and  in 
the  islands  of  the  seas.     Here  is  no  individualistic 

67 


■HP 


68 


THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORDS  PRAYER 


M 


I 


and  local  petition,  but  a  prayer  that  embraces  the 
whole  world.  The  man  who  offers  that  petition 
with  an  understanding  heart  can  no  longer  lightly 
dismiss  the  claims  of  the  heathen  world  upon  him. 
He  can  no  longer  argue  the  question  whether  Chris- 
tianity has  the  moral  right  to  supplant  the  ethnic 
faiths.  He  has  been  delivered  from  all  such  petty, 
paralyzing  views  of  the  mission  of  Christianity  to 
the  world.  He  sees  a  kingdom  that  is  not  limited 
by  any  racial  or  geographical  boundaries,  that  does 
not  draw  the  color-line,  that  is  universal  in  its  scope, 
that  opens  its  gates  like  ancient  Rome  to  all  kindreds 
and  peoples  and  tribes ;  and  so  he  neither  mumbles 
his  words,  nor  misses  the  meaning;  as  he  prays, 
"  Thy  kingdom  come,  thy  will  be  done,  as  in  heaven^ 
so  on  fc  rth." 

The  New  Social  Order 

It  presents  a  glowing  picture  of  the  new  social 
order  in  the  coming  age.  It  is  evident  that,  if  God's 
will  is  to  be  done  on  earth  as  it  is  in  heaven,  there 
is  before  us  a  golden  a^e  in  vvhicli  poverty,  social 
injustice,  war.  class  hatred,  and  all  the  other  great 
evils  which  liang  like  festering  sores  on  the  body 
politic,  will  have  disappeared.  It  is  a  declaration 
that  all  life  is  to  l>e  l)rought  under  the  sway  of 
Christian  ideals.  It  throws  new  light  upon  that 
word  of  Jesus,  "  The  field  is  the  world."  Not  simply 
the  world  where  men  pray  and  sing  and  worship 
and  administer  sacraments,  but  also  the  world  where 


I' 


^^■sfm^iixm^t;^^mi 


THE    IDEAL   OF   THE    KINGDOM 


69 


men  toil  and  suffer,  marry  and  beget  cliildren,  pass 
laws,  edit  newspapers,  clean  up  slums,  teach,  carry 
on  governmeiit,  buy  and  sell,  construct  railways,  and 
open  up  new  countriet:— all  this  big  complex  world 
with  its  varied  interests  is  the  field  in  which  we  are 
to  ?ow  the  good  seed  of  the  kingdom.  It  means  that 
the  kingdom  of  God  is  to  come  in  politics  and 
economics  as  well  as  in  morals  and  religion. 

Xot  in  Utopia,  subterranean  fields, 
Or  some  secreted  island,  Heaven  knows  where! 
But  in  the  very  world,  which  is  the  world 
Of  all  of  us. 

— Wordsurorth. 

Just  what  kind  of  a  society  would  exist  if  God's 
will  were  done  on  earth  as  it  is  in  heaven  is  a 
debatable  question,  Possibly  there  would  be  some 
form  of  cooperative  commonwealth.  Possibly  so- 
ciety would  still  be  on  a  capitalistic  basis.  One  thing 
is  certain,  that  there  would  be  a  more  equitable  dis- 
tribution of  the  world's  wealth.  In  the  coming  city 
there  will  be  no  army  of  itinerant  bartenders  and 
saloon-keepers.  The  social  evil,  which  is  so  closely 
linked  with  the  liquor  irafiic,  will  be  a  thing  of  the 
past.  Arbitration  will  take  the  place  of  war  as  a 
means  of  settling  disputes  among  the  nations. 

What  a  glowing  picture  of  the  new  social  order 
is  presented  to  us  in  this  ideal  of  the  kingdom! 
Rauschenbusch,  in  one  of  his  books,  tells  us  that 
he  remembers  how  Father  McGlynn,  speaking  at 
Cooper  Union  in  the  first  Sin<:le  Tax  Campaign  in 


i 


yO         TlIK  SOCIAL  IDi:.\LS  Ul-   THE  LOKD's  I'K WKK 

Xew  York,  in  r886,  recited  the  words,  -  Thy  king- 
dom come,  thy  will  be  done  in  earth,  as  it  is  in 
heaven,"  and  as  the  great  audience  realized  for  the 
first  time  the  social  significance  of  the  holy  words, 
it  lifted  them  oflF  their  seats  with  a  shout  of  joy. 


Il  ! 


P'  1 


»' 


The  Real  World  of  To-day 

We  have  been  considering  the  world  as  it  will  be 
when  transformed  by  the  spirit  of  Jesus.  The  world 
of  to-day  is  very  fax"  from  that  ideal. 

Situation  in  Respect  to  Missions 

For  nineteen  centuries  men  have  been  praying, 
"  Thy  kingdom  come,  thy  will  Ije  done,  as  in  heaven,' 
so  on  earth,"  and  yet  it  is  estimated  that  there  are 
still  nearly  a  thousand  millions  of  i)eopIe  who  have 
never  heard  the  good  news  of  the  kingdom. 

The  testimony  as  to  the  awful  immorality  of 
heathen  lands  is  strong  and  convincino.  Tlie  un- 
speakable vileness  of  Hinduism  both  a^  a  religion 
and  in  its  efTects  upon  society  is  well  known.  Lord 
Curzon.  in  '"The  Problem  of  tb.e  Far  Fast."  writes 
of  the  IJuddhist  priests:  "  Their  piety  is  an  illusion, 
their  pretensions  a  fraud,  they  arc  the  (outcasts  of 
society."  Confucianism  is  a  philosopliv  ratlier  than 
a  religion.  It  has  no  answer  to  great  (|uestions 
which  the  soul  propounds.  It  is  franklv  agnostic. 
-As  a  con.secjuence,  it  has  failed  in  pnxhicing  piu-ity 
of  life  and  strength  of  character.     .Mohamme.lani.sn'i 


iHE    IDEAL   Ol'   THE    KINGDOM 


71 


has  had  a  free  hand  in  Turkey  and  I'crsia;  and  if  a 
religion,  like  a  tree,  is  to  be  known  by  its  fruits,  then 
these  countries  are  a  sad  commentary  uix>n  the  fail- 
ure of  Mohammedanism  as  a  force  making  for 
righteousness.  Created  by  a  religion  of  the  letter, 
Mohammedan  civilization  petrifies  in  arrested  de- 
velopment or  sinks  into  decay. 

All  over  the   East  the  harvest   is   ripe,  but  the 
laborers  are  few.     Among  tlie  thousand  millions  of 
peqjle  who  have  never  had  an  ade(|uate  opportunity 
to  know  Jesus  Christ  and  to  become  his  real  dis- 
ciples, it  is  estimated  that  there  are  but  thirteen 
thousand  missionaries  at  work.     That  means  that 
there  is  but  one  missionary  for  every  seventy-seven 
thousand  people.     Never  perhaps  in  the  whole  his- 
tory of  missions  was  the  call  to  preach  the  gospel 
of  the  kingdom  to  all  nations  so  loud  and  clear  as  at 
the  present  time.    Missionaries  tell  us  that  we  have 
in  the  Orient  hundreds  of  millions  of  people  who 
have  been   suddenly  confronted   with  the  blinding 
light  of  Western  civilization.    The  old  philosophies 
and  religions  by  which  they  were  dimly  led  are  in 
process  of  disintegrat-  )n.     The  Orient  toKlav  is  in 
a  plastic  condition.     The  great  question  is  this:  Ts 
the  new  civilization  of  Japan.  Korea.  India,  China 
to  l)e  based  upon  materialism,  or  upon  the  ideals  of 
Jesus!'    Can  any  man  who  has  caught  a  vision  of 
the  kingdom  of  God  on  earth  honestly  face  the-^c 
facts  without  being  fired  by  a  spirit  of  divine  dis- 
content ? 


72 


THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LOKD's  PRAYER 


lei 


M 


ll 


rl' 


The  Present  Social  Order 

The  ideal  social  order  in  which  God's  will  is  done 
as  It  IS  in  heaven  and  the  present  social  state  stand 
out  in  startling  contrast. 

One  of  the  chief  characteristics  of  the  modern 
social  temper  is  its  discontent.    The  unrest  is  deep- 
seated  and  wide-spread.    It  is  found  in  the  most  ex- 
treme forms  in  European  countries,  where  society 
is  most  congested  and  competition  keenest.     But 
even  in  the  United  States  and  Canada,  with  tlieir 
great  national   resources,  where   free  land   is  still 
available,  and  with  a  comparative  scarcity  of  labor, 
there  is  heard  from  many  c|uarters  the  shrill  and 
issionate  cry  of  protest.     Discontent  is  stirred  by 
•onomic    conditions.      It    arises    from    conflicting 
.'inions  as  to  conditions  of  labor,  production,  and 
iitribution.     Machinery  has  played  a  large  part  in 
e  modern  industrial  problem.    While  it  has  enor- 
>usly  increased  the  jiroductive  forces  of  society, 
■ding  tr,  the  material  prosperity  of  tlie  world,  and 
>rdir ,'  facilities  for  the  relief  elements  of  life, 
las  r      been  an  unmixed  blessing.    It  has  brought 
H  V  rs  into  industry — woman  and  child  lalx>r — 

..u  -t  vause  of  the  conditions  under  which  the  work 
is  d  .  exposes  the  workers  to  grave  j)hysical  and 
moral  dangers.  Machines  are  costly,  and  can  be 
obtained  only  by  the  few.  The  result  is  that  the 
majority  of  the  actual  pnxkicers  of  wealth  can 
scarcely  hope  to  get  free  from  a  mere  existence  wage. 


THE    [DEAL    OF    THE    KI.VCDOAr 


7?^ 


While  machinery  has  piled  up  colossal  fortunes 
for  the  favored  few,  squalid  poverty  still  curses  our 
country.  In  many  of  the  large  centers  of  population 
the  mansions  of  the  rich  and  the  slum  tenements  of 
the  poor  are  almost  within  a  stone's  throw  of  each 
other.  In  the  one  tens  of  thousands  of  dollars  are 
frequently  spent  in  providing  for  one  social  func- 
tion. In  the  other  there  is  a  continual  struggle  to 
provide  sufficient  food  to  keep  body  and  soul  to- 
gether. It  has  l>ccn  estimated  from  a  study  of  the 
census  returns  of  the  I'nitcd  States  that  one  per 
cent  of  the  families  hold  more  than  one-half  of  the 
aggregate  wealth  of  the  country. 

That  the  present  social  order  is  very  far  from 
the  ideal  of  the  kingdom  is  evident.  In  a  world 
where  God's  will  is  done  on  earth  as  it  is  in  heaven, 
the  great  evils,  poverty  and  the  class  hatred,  will 
have  disappeared. 

"  To  call  the  confused  wreck  of  our  social  order 
and  life  an  arrangement  of  Providence  is  quite  one 
of  the  most  insolent  and  wicked  ways  of  taking  the 
name  of  God  in  vain."  (John  Ruskin.) 

"Our  present  social  inequality  materializes  the 
upper  classes,  vulgarizes  the  middle  classes,  and 
brutalizes  tlic  lower  classes."  (Matthew  Arnold.) 


The  Church  and  the  Kingdom 

The  church  and  the  kingdom  are  not  identical. 
The  kingdom  is  a  term  of  far  richer  content  and  of 


'W 


\       riiK  sorTAL  !in:\i.s  or  tfik  lokd's  pu.wku 


I 


m 


wider  ooiicq)tion  tlian  the  cliurch.  The  kingdom  is 
the  sui)rcinc  good  of  Christianity.  The  church  is 
the  visible  means  of  arriving  at  that  supreme  good. 
As  churches  and  denominations,  we  do  not  Hve  for 
ourselves.  Our  chief  business  as  churches  is  so  to 
work  and  worship  and  i)ray  that  God's  kingdom 
shall  come  in  its  fulness.  If  in  a  spirit  of  denomi- 
national selfishness  we  stretch  out  greedy  hands  to 
make  our  church  great  and  powerful,  we  are  not 
only  missing  the  genius  of  the  gospel,  but  we  are 
also  working  against  the  kingdom  of  God. 

Making  Clear  the  Ideal 

The  church  can  hasten  the  coming  of  the  king- 
dom by  insi)iring  men  with  the  ideal  of  the  kingdom. 
One  reason  that  the  kingdom  has  made  such  slow 
progress  in  conmiercial,  industrial,  and  political  rela- 
tions has  been  the  prevalence  of  the  belief  that  the 
mission  of  the  church  is  purely  spiritual,  that  its 
business  is  to  save  souls,  not  bodies— incHviduals, 
not   society.      Men    have   thought  of   the   prayer- 
meeting,  the  creed,  the  Lord's  Supper,  and  certain 
days  and  seasons  as  sacred,  but  of  politics,  com- 
mercial and  industrial  life,  amusements  and  social 
functions  as  secular.     As  a  consequence  there  has 
been  developed  among  fairly  good  people  a  double 
standard  of  conduct.      Men  who  in  their  private 
Hves  are  honest,  kind,  and  generous,  when  they  enter 
into  commercial  and  political  life  are  merciless  and 
un.scrupulous.  and  apparently  without  any  compunc- 


Tin:  IDEAL  or  the  kingdom 


75 


It 


tion  of  conscience  follow  the  law  of  the  pasture  and 
of  the  jungle. 

Men  are  responsive  to  ideals.  In  every  age  of 
the  church  its  membership  has  answered  to  the 
ideals  of  its  leaders.  Monasticism  and  the  Crusades 
are  historical  examples  of  tl.e  reaamcss  of  men  to 
follow  Kicals.  no  matter  how  thorny  the  road  or 
steep  the  ascent.  Can  any  one  doubt  that  when  the 
clear  note  of  a  regenerate  societv,  as  well  as  re- 
generated individuals,  is  sounded  in  our  churches 
multitudes  of  men  will  follow  that  ideal  in  spite  of 
hnancial  loss  and  social  sacrifice? 

In  eflfort  to  realize  the  ideal  of  the  kingdom  the 
church  should  not  become  the  advocate  of  anv  one 
class.  In  Christ  Jesus  there  is  neither  bond  nor  free 
capitalist  nor  proletariat,  millionaire  nor  pauper' 
Socialist  nor  Single-Taxer,  but  all  are  one.  The 
church  is  to  fight  injustice,  greed,  inhumanity,  vio- 
lence ;  and  no  one  class  in  society  has  a  monopoly 
upon  these  things.  A  class  church,  which  stands 
either  for  the  rights  of  the  capitalist  or  for  the 
rights  of  labor,  is  a  contradiction  to  the  universal 
spirit  of  the  kingdom. 

A  Monitor  of  the  Social  Conscience 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  church  to  keep  the  social 
conscience  sensitive.     ?Cations  perish  from  within 
not  from  without.    Matthew  Arnold  said  of  ancient 
nations:  "  Down  they  come,  one  after  another,  and 
all  for  lack  of  righteousness."    The  church  can  act 


7^> 


J  111!;  SOCIAL  lUKAI.S  ()!••  THE  LORDS  I'RAYICK 


I: 


I 

.  ! 


n 


as  a  monitor  of  tlic  social  conscience  by  fearlessly 
protesting  against  all  social  wrongs.  She  cannot 
afford  to  compromise  with  evil.  When  it  is  a  ques- 
tion of  right  or  wrong,  there  is  no  middle  ground. 
So  long  as  the  ideal  of  the  kingdom  is  unrealized 
because  of  greed  and  oppression  the  church  must 
figlit.  Said  Jesus  •  "  Think  not  that  I  am  come  to 
send  peace  on  the  earth ;  I  came  not  to  send  peace, 
but  a  sword"  (Afatt.  lO  :  34).  The  ideals  of  the 
kingdom  will  never  be  realized  without  a  struggle. 
Christianity  summons  men  to  a  lifelong  battle  against 
all  forms  of  social  evil  and  injustice.  It  lifts  its 
banner  high  above  the  dust  of  the  common  street, 
and  summons  the  faithful  to  a  war  of  no  surrender 
and  no  compromise. 

Furnishiug  a  Practical  Social  Program 

As  a  practical  program  of  what  the  churches 
should  stand  for  in  seeking  the  ideal  of  the  kingdom, 
nothing  more  deeply  significant  as  a  sign  of  the 
changed  attitude  of  the  churches  to  the  social  prob- 
lem has  occurred  in  recent  years  than  the  resolutions 
unanimously  passed  by  the  Federal  Council  of  the 
Churches  of  Christ,  held  in  Philadelphia,  in  Decem- 
ber, 1908.  In  that  Council  thirty-three  denomina- 
tions, with  eighteen  million  church-members  and 
nearly  forty  million  a<lherents,  were  represented. 

To  give  these  resolutions  in  full  would  occupy 
many  pages  in  this  book.  There  is  a  frank  ackno\,i- 
edgment  that  the  organized  church  has  not  always 


M^ 


THE    IDEAL   OF    THE    KINGDOM 


77 


spoken  when  it  should  have  borne  witness,  and  its 
plea  for  righteousness  has  not  always  been  uttered 
with  boldness.  Approval  is  given  those  enii'loyers 
"  who  have  shown  in  the  conduct  of  ihcir  business  a 
fraternal  spirit  and  a  disposition  to  deal  justly  and 
humanely  with  their  employees  as  to  wages,  profit- 
sharing,  welfare  work,  protection  against  accidcms, 
sanitary  conditions  of  toil,  and  readiness  to  submit 
differences  to  arbitration."  Approval  is  given  aUo 
to  "  such  labor  organizations  as  have  under  wise 
leadership  throughout  many  years.  b\  patient  cul- 
tivation of  just  feelings  and  temperate  views  among 
their  members,  raised  the  efficiency  of  service,  set 
the  example  of  calmness  and  self-restraint  in  con- 
ferences with  employers,  and  promoted  the  welfare 
not  only  of  the  men  of  their  own  craft,  but  of  the 
entire  body  of  working  men." 

The  Federal  Council  declares  that  it  is  the  duty  of 
Christian  people  to  concern  themselves  directly  with 
certain  practical  industrial  problems,  and  that  in  its 
opinion  the  churches  must  stand : 

For  equal  rights  and  complete  justice  for  all  men  in  all 
stations  of  life. 

For  the  rights  of  all  men  to  the  opportunity  for  self- 
maintenance,  a  right  ever  to  be  wisely  and  strongly  safe- 
guarded against  encroachment  of  everj-  kind. 

For  the  right  of  workers  to  some  protection  against  the 
hardships  often  resulting  from  the  swift  crisis  of  industrial 
change. 

For  the  principle  of  conciliation  and  arbitration  in  in- 
dustrial dissensions. 


-lis] 


^^M 


MICROCOPY    RESOLUTION    TEST   CHART 

(ANSI  and  ISO  TEST  CHART  No.  2) 


l.u 


I.I 


|45 

150 


2.8 

1^ 


2.5 
2.0 


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1.8 


1.25 


^  APPLIED  INA^GE 

^S\l  1653    East    Mam    Streel 

S^S  Rochester.    Ne*v   York         1A609       USA 

'•— S  (716)    482  -  0300  -  Phone 

g^  (716)    288  -  5989  -  Fr.x 


^*iJ^^JiA 


I'  !> 


I     ' 


78         THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD's  PRAYER 

For  the  protection  of  the  workers  from  dangerous  ma- 
chinery, occupational  diseases,  injuries,  and  mortality. 

For  the  abolition  of  child  labor. 

For  such  a  regulation  of  the  conditions  of  tc'i'  for 
women  as  shall  safeguard  the  physical  and  moral  he  th  of 
the  community. 

For  the  suppression  of  the  "  swoatiiit,-  system." 

For  the  gradual  and  reasonable  reduction  of  the  hours 
of  labor  to  the  lowest  practical  point,  and  for  that  degree 
of  leisure  for  all  which  is  a  condition  of  the  highest  human 
life. 

For  a  release  from  employment  one  day  in  seven. 

For  a  living  wage  as  a  minimum  in  every  industry,  and 
for  the  highest  wage  that  each  industry  can  afford. 

For  the  most  equitable  division  of  the  products  of  in- 
dustry that  can  be  ultimately  devised. 

For  suitable  provision  for  the  old  age  of  the  workers, 
and  for  those  incapacitated  by  injury. 

For  the  abatement  of  poverty. 


The  Kingdom  is  Coming 

The  man  who  prays  with  a  believing  heart,  "  Thv 
kingdom  come,  thy  will  be  done,  as  in  heaven,  so 
on  earth,"  can  face  the  evils  of  hfe  in  a  spirit  of  in- 
vincible faith.  He  is  convinced  that  we  are  not 
engaged  in  a  forlorn  hope.  In  the  new  awakenimg 
of  the  church  to  her  social  mission,  and  in  the  fact 
that  for  the  first  time  since  the  third  century  slie 
is  taking  the  missionary  etUerprise  seriously,  he 
sees  ground  for  optimism.  The  call  to  brinr  'n  the 
kingdom  of  God  comes  to  us  in  the  very  word  of 
Jesus. 


mm 


m^m^ 


THE   IDEAL  OF   THE    KINGDOM 


79 


There's  a  work  of  Cod  half  done, 
There's  the  kingdom  of  his  Son, 
There's  the  triumph  just  begun, 
Pur  it  through. 

To  you  the  task  is  given, 
By  you  the  bolt  is  driven. 
By  the  very  God  of  heaven, 
Put  it  through. 


illf 


VII 


THE  KIXGDO.M 


m 


1'  , 


n 


AXl)  THE  I'RLXCTPLE  OF 
LOVE 


"  2:ilg  kinsbom  coxae,    mi^  foill  be  bone,  as  in  litaben,  so 
on  cartlj" 

We  have  already  learned  that  Jesus  founded  a 
new  social  order  to  which  he  apphe-  the  Messianic 
phrase  in  current  use  among  the  people  of  his  da}, 
namely,  the  kingdom  of  God.  Before  the  members 
of  the  kingdom  he  has  set  the  task  of  bringing  all  the 
relationships  of  life  into  conformity  with  the  will 
of  the  heavenly  Father.  The  questions  now  arise : 
What  are  the  vital  principles  of  this  new  social 
order.?  Is  there  in  these  principles  of  the  kingdom 
sufficient  motive  power  to  produce  the  end  he  had 
in  mind? 

The  Jews  were  intensely  religious,  and  the  quality 
of  their  religion  had  set  them  apart  as  a  peculiar 
people.  There  had  grown  up  among  them  ten  thou- 
sand commandments.  A  man's  life  was  hedged  in 
by  law  from  the  time  that  he  arose  in  the  morning 
until  again  at  evening  his  eyes  closed  in  slumber. 
It  was  a  great  system  of  legalism,  and  frequently 
it  left  the  inner  life  untouched. 
.So 


THE    KINGDOM    AND   THE   PRINCIPLE   01-    LOVE    8l 

Jerus,  unlike  the  rabbis,  and  in  contrast  with  tlic 
great  teachers  of  the  ethnic  reHgions,  did  not  lay 
tlown  an  elaborate  system  of  rules  and  regulations 
which  were  to  be  binding  upon  the  members  of  the 
kingdom.  Instead,  he  set  forth  a  few  simple,  funda- 
mental principles,  and  left  it  to  the  enlightened  con- 
science of  each  age  to  decide  how  these  r.rinciples 
should  be  applied  to  their  particular  problems.  That 
he  taught  principles,  and  not  rules,  is  perhaps  one 
of  the  best  evidences  of  his  sanity  and  wisdom.  He 
understood  diat  he  dealt,  not  with  clay  to  be  molded, 
but  with  minds  that  should  grow. 

Love  the  Regulative  Principle 

In  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  we  have  what  might 
be  called  the  constitution  of  the  new  society.  The 
keyword  is  love.  It  is  to  be  the  central  and  regu- 
lative principle  of  the  new  order. 

Love  Not  a  Mere  Emotion  or  Sentiment 

We  must  be  careful  not  to  read  sentimental  values 
into  that  word  "  Love."  It  means  not  a  sentiment 
or  emotion,  but  a  principle  of  conduct.  Love  as  a 
sentiment  cannot  be  forced.  A  feeling  such  as 
we  have  for  our  children  cannot  by  any  act  of  our 
will  be  developed  for  the  dirty  repulsive  tramp  who 
knocks  at  our  back  door.  But  we  can  see  in  the 
tramp  a  being  full  of  divine  possibilities.  Under 
the  rags  xve  can  sec  a  man  whom  God  loves  and 


m- 


m 


)V1 

ill 


O.K  •     T 


\m 


82 


Tilli  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LOKD's  PRAYLR 


for  whom  Christ  died,  and  we  can  put  ourselves  in 
an  attitude  of  srood  will  to  him. 


■s  l 

-  ! 

I  i 

*  ■ 


pi 

I* 


The  Epitome  of  the  Whole  Duty  of  Man 

The  great  classic  passage  in  which  Jesus  sums  up 
the  whole  duty  of  man  is  Mark  12  :  28-34.  A  cer- 
tain lawyer  had  come  out  to  see  this  popular  Teacher 
from  provincial  Galilee  put  to  shame  by  the  learned 
doctors  of  metropolitan  Jerusalem.  As  he  listens, 
he  becomes  conscious  that  there  is  in  this  man  a 
keenness  of  intellect,  a  spiritual  insight,  a  power  of 
debate,  that  cannot  be  equaled  by  the  clever  men  of 
the  capital.  So  he  puts  the  (luestion,  "  What  com- 
mandment is  the  first  of  all  ?  "  Jesus  answered : 
"  The  first  of  all  the  commandments  is.  Hear,  O 
Israel:  The  Lord  our  God,  the  Lord  is  one.  And 
thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  heart, 
and  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy  mind,  and 
with  all  thy  strength.  ,  .  And  the  second  is  like, 
namely  this.  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thy- 
self." And  when  the  scribe  answered  discreetly, 
with  willing  acknowledgment  that  love  to  God  and 
love  to  man  is  of  surpassing  significance  in  life  and 
duty,  Jesus  said  to  him,  "  Thou  art  not  far  from 
the  kingdom  of  God." 

Specific  Applications  of  the  Principle 

In  contrast  to  the  spirit  of  revenge,  which  finds 
expression  in  blood- feuds,  vendettas — in  short,  in 
the  lex  talionis  conception  of  law — Jesus  teaches 


THE   Kli\(;iX)M    AiVD   THE   PRINCIPLE  Ol-    LOVE    83 

the  principle  of  non-resistance.  (Matt.  5  :  39.)  In- 
stead of  the  provincial  spirit,  which  vi^ould  treat 
Samaritans  and  Gentiles  as  dogs,  and  which  gave 
unhesitating  obedience  to  the  ancient  saying,  "  Thou 
shalt  love  thy  neighbor  and  hate  thine  enemy," 
Jesus  laid  upon  the  members  of  the  kingdom  the  in- 
junction: "  Love  your  enemies,  bless  them  that  curse 
you,  do  good  to  them  that  hate  you,  and  pray  for 
them  which  despitefully  use  you."  In  opposition  to 
the  hoarding  instinct  which  would  shut  the  door 
against  the  beggar  Lazarus  and  his  tribe  who  come 
seeking  alms,  Jesus  taught :  "  Give  to  him  that  asketh 
of  thee,  and  from  him  that  would  borrow  of  thee 
turn  not  away"  (Matt.  5  :  42). 

It  may  be  said  that  these  teachings  are  not  prac- 
tical, that  to  obey  them  literally  would  lead  to  an- 
archy and  pauperism.  It  may  be  granted  that  there 
are  grave  difficulties  connected  with  a  literal  inter- 
pretation of  these  words.  It  is  well  to  remember  that 
Jesus  was  a  poet,  and  to  interpret  him  literally  is 
sometimes  to  misinterpret  him.  What  Jesus  is  seek- 
ing to  impress  upon  his  hearers  is  the  all-conquering 
power  of  love.  If  a  man  loves,  he  will  not  retaliate 
injury  for  injury.  He  will  not  consider  that  he  has 
done  his  whole  duty  wiien  he  has  telephoned  the 
police  concerning  the  tramp  at  the  back  door,  or  even 
when  he  has  directed  him  to  the  nearest  soup-kitchen 
or  other  charitable  organization.  Doubtless  we  are 
not  literally  to  turn  the  other  cheek  to  every  one  that 
smites  us,  or  to  dole  out  monev  to  everv  be^crar 


"^5Sa7 


7ZM' 


>T^'?5*;^'tiSi^:4J. 


8.1 


THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD  S  PRAYER 


h?  ■', 


Pi 


who  knocks  at  our  door.  If  love  be  the  governing 
principle  of  our  lives,  we  will  recognize  that  to  put  no 
restraints  upon  a  bully  in  his  acts  of  violence  and  to 
pauperize  able-bodied  men  by  freely  dividing  unto 
them  our  substance  is  about  the  greatest  evil  we 
could  inHict  upon  them.  Love  must  discriminate, 
must  think  in  terms  of  the  common  good,  of  society 
as  well  as  of  the  individual. 


The  Sufficiency  of  Love 

The  sufficiency  of  love  as  a  principle  in  bringing 
about  the  salvation  of  society  is  evident  when  we 
contrast  it  with  a  few  other  things. 

Loz'e  Versus  SelfisJincss 

The  great  apostle  of  frank,  undiluted  selfishness 
is  Nietzsche.  He  writes :  '"  Life  is  essentially  the 
3'  propriation,  the  injury,  the  subduing  of  the  alien 
and  the  weak.  It  is  suppression,  compulsion,  the 
enforcing  of  its  own  forms ;  it  is  assimilation,  and 
at  the  least  and  gentlest,  exploitation.  '  Do  I  coun- 
sel you  to  love  your  neighbor?  Xay,  T  counsel  you 
rather  to  shun  your  neighbor,  and  to  love  those 
farthest  away.'  "  Nietzsche  professes  to  base  his 
philosophy  on  the  evolutionary  law  of  the  sur/ival 
of  the  fittest.  But  even  evolutionar}'  science  might 
have  taught  him  that  there  has  gone  hand  in  hand 
with  the  law  of  struggle  the  law  of  cooperation 
Drummond  has  reminded  us   that   while  the  first 


^-*jr^tE^^y^jmdmi^M±^m^^'^s^mm^6^m 


llli:    KIMiLRJM    .WD    llli:    I'RIXCII'I.K    OF    F.OVK    S3 

chapter  or  two  of  cvoliiti(»n  niriy  he  lieaded  the  strug- 
gle for  life,  the  book  as  a  whole  is  not  a  tale  of  selfish 
batilings.  It  is  a  love-story,  made  beautiful  by  love's 
struggles  and  triumph. 

It  is  selfishness  ajjplied  to  commercial  and  indus- 
tr;al  life  that  is  causing  so  much  conflict  and  misery 
in  our  present  social  order.  The  methods  of  tlu- 
modern  trusts,  which  are  said  to  bo  evolution  ap- 
plied to  commerce,  have  led  to  such  an  outburst  of 
hostile  feeling  that  in  all  countries  legislative  acts 
are  either  bringing  the  trusts  under  regulation  or 
putting  them  out  of  business  entirely.  In  the  indus- 
trial world  selfishness  has  arrayed  class  against  class, 
has  been  responsible  for  a  thousand  ruinous  strikes, 
has  led  to  the  destruction  of  life  and  property,  has 
pushed  thousands  of  girls  and  women  into  lives  of 
prostitution,  has  involved  whole  communities  in  suf- 
fering and  hardships,  and  on  more  than  one  occa- 
sion has  brought  countries  to  the  verge  of  civil  war. 
You  cannot  build  a  stable  society  on  the  ethics  of 
selfishness.  Selfishness  disintegrates;  love  unites. 
Selfishness  is  antisocial;  love  is  the  great  society- 
making  force.  Selfishness  destroys ;  love  constructs. 
Selfishness  is  narrow,  and  sees  through  a  glass 
darkly ;  but  love's  vision  sweeps  a  wide  horizon,  and 
she  has  a  wisdom  that  was  never  dreamed  of  in  the 
philosophy  of  egoism.  Love  is  of  God ;  and  when  it 
becomes  the  governing  principle  of  an  individual  or 
of  society,  selfishness  with  its  brood  of  evils  is  cast 
out. 


P^^r^^«^^^^^^^ 


Sr. 


Tiir;  SM(  I  \i,  11)1. Ai.s  ()i-  I  HI",  i.okd's  tkayi-U 


■I  < 


(i: 


Loi'e  I  crsus  force 

It  has  already  bci-ii  noted  that  one  of  the  most 
persistent  temptations  which  came  to  Jesus  was  the 
appeal  to  nsc  force  in  the  establishment  of  his 
kingdom,  I5ut  Jesus  absolutely  refused  to  use  either 
celestial  or  human  force  in  carrying  out  his  ideals 
for  the  world.  Jt  was  by  the  way  of  l(jve,  and  not 
by  tiie  bloody  path  ot  revolution,  that  the  earth  was 
to  be  redeemed  with  all  its  peoples  and  interests. 

The  victories  achieved  by  force  are  for  the  most 
part  short-lived.  Jesus  was  true  to  the  facts  of  his- 
tory when  he  said  to  one  of  his  disciples:  "  Put  up 
again  thy  sword  into  its  place :  for  all  they  that  take 
the  sword  shall  perish  with  the  sword"  (Matt. 
26  :  52).  His  <kxnrine  of  non-resistance  does  not 
necessarily  mean  that  a  member  of  the  kingdotn 
should  never  use  force  in  repelling  injustice  and 
wrong.  We  can  think  of  situations  in  which  it  may 
be  necessary  to  destroy  lite  in  order  to  save  life. 
There  have  l>ecn  righteous  wars.  To  carrv  out  the 
principle  of  love  one  must  sometimes  fight.  But  war 
no  more  settles  the  justice  of  a  nation's  cause  than 
the  ancient  trial  by  combat  settled  it  among  indi- 
viduals. It  simply  shows  which  nation  has  the 
richest  purse  and  the  strongest  arm.  Norman  An- 
gell,  in  "  The  GrcM  Illusion."  has  shown  that  even 
from  the  standpoint  of  the  side  tliat  wins,  war  is  as 
unsatisfactory  economically  as  it  is  ethically  bar- 
barous. 


^^^^^^^} 


TIIK    KINCDoM      \Mi    T  UK    I'NI  MUM.!-:    OF    U)\E    ;;- 

What  lias  l>ccii  .sii<l  conccmiiig  disimtes  amonjj  tli-j 
nations  applies  c(|ually  well  to  the  industrial  struggle. 
The  lalx>r  movement  is  from  many  fwints  of  view 
a  great  ethical  movement.    The  average  man,  who  is 
neither  a  capitalist  nor  a  wage-earner,  finds  himself 
in  sympathy  with  many  of  the  articles  found  on  its 
official  program.    The  great  temptation  of  the  labor 
muons  has  been  to  use  ff)rce  in  bringing  alx)Ut  re- 
forms in  the  industrial  world.     I  kit  whenever  labor 
has  put  its  hand  tc  the  sword  it  has  always  suffered. 
The  man  who  incites  his  fellows  to  riot,  murder, 
arson,  is  not  the  friend  of  labor,  but  its  enemy.    The 
new  order  will  never  come  by  way  of  a  club,  a  stick 
of  dynamite,  or  a  rifle.     Force  can  be  met  with 
force,  and  a  reign  of  terror  is  always  followed  by 
military  despotism.    Love  works  silently,  but  in  the 
long  run  its  victories  are  greater  and  more  perma- 
nent than  any  that  may  be  gained  by  violence. 

Loz'c  J'crsus  Class  Hatred 

Christianity  and  socialism  have  much  in  common. 
Coth  look  forward  to  an  ideal  social  order  in  which 
poverty,  inequality  of  opportunity,  and  injustice  will 
have  disappeared.  In  common  with  Christianity 
socialism  has  the  power  of  evoking  some  of  the 
noblest  qualities  of  mind  and  heart.  Christianity 
and  socialism  alike  put  emphasis  on  the  sanctity  of 
human  life  and  the  brotherhood  of  man,  and  so- 
cialism has  put  Christianity  under  a  heavy  debt  by 
its  insistence  that  the  law  of  brotherhood  has  prac- 


I 

i 


88 


Till-  soriAr.  iDKAi.s  ()!•■  TIH-:  lords  pravkr 


If 


lical  CDiiscMiucnccs.  It  is  not  Ijcyoiicl  the  l)oun(Is  of 
probability  that  a  clearer  lunlcrstancling  of  the  social 
teachings  of  Jesus  will  force  us  to  adopt  as  a  Chris- 
tian principle  the  abolition  of  comixnition  and  tho 
adoption  of  some  system  of  coofieration.  Socialism. 
like  Christianity,  sees  in  selfishness  the  root  of  much 
of  our  social  misery. 

Hut  though  similiar  in  many  of  their  ideals,  Chris- 
tianity and  socialism  .ire  not  identical.  Jesus  taught 
that  the  kingdom  of  Cod  was  to  come  in  its  fulness 
through  the  triumph  of  spiritual  forces.  The  so- 
cialistic method  has  too  often  been  through  class 
hatred.  To  destroy  the  reign  of  greed,  appeal  has 
been  made  to  the  selfish  impulses  of  the  mdividual. 
To  bring  about  an  era  of  peace  atid  good  will,  class 
has  been  arrayed  against  class,  and  an  uncompro- 
mising class  struggle  has  been  proclaimed.  All  of 
this  is  opposed  to  the  universal  spirit  of  Christianity 
and  Jesus'  teaching  concerning  love.  The  kingdom 
of  God  will  never  come  through  the  suppression  of 
one  class  in  society.  A  mere  change  in  the  social 
order  will  not  transform  greedy,  turbulent,  and  law- 
less men  into  generous,  cjuiet,  law-abiding  citizens. 
If  the  program  of  socialism  is  ever  adopted  by  any 
country,  the  socialistic  dream  of  a  new  heaven  and 
a  new  earth  is  likely  to  come  in  for  a  very  rude 
awakening.  The  gospel  of  class  hatred  w-ill  never 
convert  a  mammonistic  society  into  a  new  fraternal 
and  altruistic  order.  Love  must  transform  indi- 
viduals before  it  can  transform  societv. 


^f  ja  iffirAiaffife^:* 


TIIK    Kl.\t,U(j.\l      \.\U    nil.    I'RlNCll'JJ:    (11     L(jVI 


S<; 


The  Laz,'  of  the  family  the  Ideal  Law  of  Society 

The  most  perfect  organization  we  are  acquainted 
with  is  the  family.  It  is  the  only  institution  of 
modern  life  which  is  really  permeated  by  Christian 
ideals.  In  the  family  the  strong  bear  the  burdens 
of  the  wTak.  The  interest  of  each  is  the  concern 
of  all.  The  weak  memlxT  who  has  no  economic 
resources  receives  an  ecjual  share  of  the  common 
goods.  The  family  exists  in  opposition  to  the  laws 
prevailing  in  commercial  and  industrial  life,  and 
it  is  the  violation  of  the  laws  of  political  economv 
that  gives  to  the  family  relation  the  strength,  beauty, 
and  permanence  which  are  chief  features  of  this  in- 
stitution's glory. 

It  has  already  been  noted  that  in  commercial 
and  industrial  life  it  is  difficult  for  a  good  man  to 
be  good  and  at  the  same  time  make  a  success  of  his 
business.  The  merciless  law  of  competition  exposes 
him  to  the  temptation  of  sharp  dealing,  dishonesty, 
and  inhumanity.  The  family  relation,  on  the  other 
hand,  calls  out  all  that  is  tender,  wholesome,  strong, 
and  magnanimous.  Even  the  man  who  in  com- 
mercial life  has  the  ethics  of  a  pirate,  in  the  atmos- 
phere of  the  home,  surrounded  by  his  wife  and  chil- 
dren, is  truthful,  honest,  and  loving.  The  home  is 
an  institution  of  love,  and  without  love  cannot 
exist.  The  chief  cause  of  our  social  ills  is  loveless- 
ness.  The  law  of  the  family  must  become  the  law 
of  society.    There  is  salvation  in  no  other  way.    So- 

G 


i 


yO        THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD's  PRAYER 

ciety,  like  the  family,  must  obey  the  law  of  love  if 
it  is  to  find  that  social  health  which  we  call  salvation. 


I 


ii 


ft 


Love  a  Revolutionary  Force 

We  usually  Ihink  of  love  as  one  of  the  quiet,  al- 
most effeminate  virtues,  but  there  is  iio  sternness 
like  the  sternness  of  love.    Love  is  one  of  the  most 
aggressive  revolutionary  elements  which  can  pos- 
sibly be  introduced  into  society.     Love  destroyed 
the  ancient  civilization;  it  broke  down  the  barriers 
which  separated  Jew  from  Gentile,  the  bond  from 
the  free.    It  is  only  when  men  love  that  they  become 
dangerous.     Paul  was  a  man  who  had  mobs  after 
him,  who  turned  cities  upside  donn,  and  who  left 
the  impress  of  his  life  upon  Christian  thought  and 
institutions ;  and  the  secret  of  it  all  is  found  in  his 
own  words,  "  The  love  of  Christ  constraineth  me." 
If  that  love  had  been  less  intense,  he  would  not 
have  been  hounded  by  Jewish  fanatics  and  Roman 
officials  as  a  disturber  of  the  established  order  of 
things.     When  men  really  love  they  are  ready  to 
fight.    A  love  that  can  fold  its  arms  in  the  presence 
of  social  wrong  and  falsehood  is  worthless.    When 
Ciiristian  people  take  this   great  principle  of  the 
kingdom  seriously,   there  will  begin  such  a  battle 
with  organized  selfishness  as  has  never  been  wit- 
nessed in  the  world  before.    The  law  of  the  family 
will  :.ol  become  the  law  of  society  without  a  strug- 
gle.    To  Christianize  the  present  social  order  in- 


THli    KKVGDU.M    AND    THE    PRIXCIPLE    OF   LOVE    (Jl 

volves  such  a  reconstruction  of  industry  and  com- 
merce that  it  might  almost  be  regarded  as  a  rebirth 
of  society.  That  new  birth  will  not  take  place  with- 
out suffering.  Love  will  have  to  reckon  on  ruth- 
less hostility  from  the  exploiters  of  the  weak  and 
from  all  members  of  the  privileged  classes  who  are 
unwilling  to  sacrifice  for  the  common  good.  But 
love  is  of  God ;  and  as  it  has  triumphed  in  the  family, 
so  it  will  ultimately  conquer  all  th  '-ingdoms  of  this 
world. 


ill 
III 


VIII 

THE  KINGDOM  AND  THE  PRINCIPLE  OF 

SERVICE 


m 


"  9ri|g  femgbom  cmne.    ®I|g  faiU  be  bam^  aa  in  I{eaaen,  sa 
tmeariii" 

A  SECOND  principle  of  the  kingdom,  which  our 
Lord  greatly  emphasized  in  his  teaching  and  very 
beautifully  exemplified  in  his  life,  is  the  principle  of 
service.  In  making  it  a  vital  principle  of  the  new 
social  order  he  came  into  sharp  collision  with  the 
autocratic  spirit  of  his  times.  To  receive  service 
rather  than  to  render  service  was  the  infallible  sign 
of  eminence.  To  serve  was  the  badge  of  a  slave,  as 
the  word  itself  suggests.  The  great  man  was  the 
one  who  had  the  power  to  lord  it  over  others,  to 
surround  himself  with  an  army  of  menials  who 
trembled  at  his  frown  and  jumped  to  anticipate  his 
bidding. 

That  the  disciples  had  introduced  this  spirit  of 
lordship  into  their  conception  of  the  kingdom  is 
clear  from  an  incident  recorded  in  two  of  the  Gos- 
pels. (Matt.  20  :  20-28;  Mark  10  :  35-45.)  James 
and  John  came  to  Jesus  with  the  request :  "  Grant  to 
us  that  we  may  sit,  one  on  thy  right  hand,  and  one 
02 


THE   PRINCIPLE   OF   SERVICE 


93 


■ 


; 


on  thy  left,  in  thy  glory."  Naturally  the  other  dis- 
ciples, who  were  themselves  by  no  means  free  from 
this  spirit  of  ambition,  were  indignant  when  they 
learned  of  this  attempt  to  usurp  the  chief  places  in 
the  new  social  order.  Jesus,  foreseeing  that  the  peace 
and  concord  of  the  little  group  of  men  who  now 
composed  the  nucleus  of  the  kingdom  of  God  on 
earth,  was  seriously  menaced  by  these  alien  influences 
of  ambition,  envy,  and  selfishness,  called  the  Twelve 
unto  him  and  said :  "  Ye  know  that  the  rulers  of 
the  Gentiles  lord  it  over  them,  and  they  that  are 
great  exercise  authority  over  them.  Not  so  shall 
it  be  among  you;  but  whoever  wishes  to  become 
great  among  you  shall  be  '/Ur  minister ;  and  who- 
ever wishes  to  be  first  among  you  shall  be  your 
servant;  even  as  the  Son  of  man  came  not  to  be 
ministered  to,  but  to  minister,  and  to  give  his  life 
a  ransom  for  many."  Here  we  have  a  declaration 
of  the  fact  that  in  the  kingdom  of  God  the  sphere 
of  honor  is  service,  and  the  dignity  of  manhood, 
ministry.  In  opposition  to  the  heathen  social  order, 
where  the  great  tyrannize  over  the  weak,  it  is  af- 
firmed that  the  test  of  greatness  is  loving  service. 


Service  the  Proof  of  Love 

The  Expression  of  Love 

Service,  according  to  Jesus,  is  the  natural  expres- 
sion of  love.  That  "s  the  meaning  of  that  little 
scene  so  beautifully  depicted  in  the  closing  chapter 


l-4fk 


■%iti^.^ 


i^^ 


94         THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  Ol-  TIIL  LORD's  I'KAVER 


of  the  Fourth  Gospel,  in  which  Jesus  three  times 
over  propounds  tht  same  question  to  Peter.  "  Lovest 
thou  me?  ••  And  wht  Peter  replies  in  the  affirma- 
tive, Jesus  tells  him  to  feed  his  shee]).  A  love 
that  does  not  express  itself  in  social  action  may  he 
seriously  ([uestioned. 

In  fulfdling  the  law  of  service  we  are  to  consider 
not  the  demerit  or  the  mer  '  of  the  individual,  hut 
his  need.  (Luke  14  :  r^f. ;  Matt.  5  :  42;  19  :  21.) 
Unfortunately,  we  live  in  a  world  that  is  filled  with 
the  poor,  the  incompetent,  the  diseased,  the  unem- 
ployed, the  prostitute,  and  the  imprisoned.  It  is 
often  difficult  to  discriminate  between  those  who  are 
the  victims  of  circumstances  over  whicli  they  have 
little  or  no  control,  and  those  wiio  through  their 
own  vice  and  intemperance  have  been  involved  in 
misery.  But  whatever  may  be  the  cause  of  the 
pressing  need,  that  need  creates  responsibility.  To 
disclaim  responsibility,  either  on  the  ground  that 
they  are  l)ut  the  unfortunate  victims  of  an  immoral 
social  order,  or  that  by  their  own  wnlful  disobedi- 
ence to  the  laws  of  society  they  have  brought  suf- 
fering and  degradation  upon  tliemselves,  is  to  re- 
veal a  lack  of  that  social  love  which  is  to  be  rendered 
not  according  to  desert,  but  according  to  need,  and 
which  is  binding  upon  all  members  of  the  kingdom. 

The  Test  of  Love 

Jesus   so   highly   exalts    service   as    the   test   of 
love  that,  in  his  vivid  picture  of  the  judgment  day, 


^i;^».^Hi^^mu^^ 


THE   PRINCIPLr:   OI-    SKRVKK 


95 


he  makes  the  ground  of  separation  between  the 
blessed  and  the  cursed  the  execution  or  non-execu- 
tion of  social  duties.  (Matt.  25  :  31-46.;  IIccq  we 
have  revealed  most  exfjuisitely  Jesus'  gosjK-l  of  hu- 
manitarianism.  It  is  not  dogma,  or  ritual,  or  eccle- 
siasticism  that  counts  at  the  Great  Assize,  but  lov- 
ing service  for  the  iwor,  the  diseased,  the  outcast. 
Jesus  teaches  that  the  damnable  thing  is  to  fail  to 
serve  your  neighbor.  Henry  Drummond  put  it  thus 
strongly:  "The  final  test  of  religion,  at  that  great 
day,  is  not  religiousness,  but  love ;  not  what  I  have 
done;  not  what  I  have  lx;lieved ;  not  what  I  have 
achieved,  but  how  I  have  discharged  the  common 
charities  of  life.  .  .  The  withho  ding  of  love  is  the 
negation  of  the  spirit  of  Chris  ,  the  proof  that  we 
never  knew  him,  that  for  us  he  lived  in  vain."  The 
man  who  has  never  caught  Christ's  vision  of  service, 
and  who  lives  simply  for  himself,  has  not  even 
seen  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 

The  Field  of  Service 

The  opportunities  for  fruitful  service  are  so  many 
that  it  is  impossible  even  to  enumerate  them.  Said 
Jesus,  *'  The  field  is  the  world."  In  the  world  of 
industry,  of  commerce,  of  politics,  of  education,  of 
recreation,  a  thousand  opportunities  are  knocking 
at  our  doors.  It  is  quite  possible  for  one  to  be  seri- 
ously embarrassed  by  the  wealth  of  opportunities 
which  meet  us  continually  in  our  evcry-dav  life. 


'  1 


'U-^i 


1] 

,     n  j 

i 


^^ja4,Ar,i.^v.  ^f;^;-if.x  5i 


^•^^:.y 


fiUttiiWMii^i^M 


IT'^;^]^ 


Li 


;.  :f 


9O         THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OE  i  HE  LORDS  PR.\YER 

Battle  with  Wrong  Social  Conditions 

The  man  with  the  spirit  of  Jesus  will  not  rest 
content  v/ith  the  mere  rescue  and  amelioration  of 
individuals.     To   feed    the   hungry,   to  clothe   the 
naked,  to  visit  the  prisoner,  are  important  fields  for 
Christian  service.     It  is  the  glory  of  Christianity 
that  she  has  founded  hospitals  and  homes  for  the 
sick,   the   poor,   the   outcast,    the   insane,   and   the 
orphan.     For  centuries  all  philanthropic  work  was 
carried  on  hy  the  church,  and  even  to-day  she  is 
a  close  rival  to  the  state  in  the  multitude  of  her 
benevolent  activities.     But  philanthropy  is  not  the 
last  word  in  Christian  service.    We  are  told  by  men 
who  are  in  close  touch  with  social  settlements  and 
bureaus  of  charity  that  much  of  our  so-called  philan- 
thropy tends  to  blunt  the  edge  of  moral  perceptions 
and   consequently   to  perpetuate   those   conditions 
which   seem   to  make  philanthropy  necessary.     A 
merchant  who  has  endowed,  or  helped  to  endow,  a 
maternity  hospital   for  working  girls,  may  experi- 
ence a  very  pleasant  glow  of  self-satisfaction  as  he 
reads   over   the   annual   report   of   the   institution, 
which  shows  the  splendid  service  it  has  rendered 
to  scores  of  unfortunate  girls  at  the  most  critical 
time  in  their  lives.     Hut  that  same  merchant,  not- 
withstanding his  philanthropic  impulse,  may  be  pay- 
ing the  women  employees  of  his  establishment  such 
insufficient  wages  that  they  are  continually  tempted 
to  supplement  their  wages  by  bartering  their  virtue 


Tin:   I'RlXCIl'Lli   OF   SIiKVICE 


97 


in  that  market  where  youth  and  inexperience  are 
commodities  that  command  the  higliest  price. 

This  principle  of  the  kingdom  will  lead  us  to  a 
study  of  the  causes  of  ix>verty,  prostitution,  drunken- 
ness, and  other  evils  of  modern  life.  While  we  will 
gladly  serve  those  who  are  the  unfortunate  victims 
of  wrong  social  conditions,  our  main  concern  will 
be  to  remedy  the  conditions  which  cause  so  much 
wreckage  of  human  life.  This  will  probably  lead 
us  into  the  field  of  political  reform.  It  is  perhaps 
easy  to  overestimate  the  value  of  legislative  acts, 
but  no  more  effective  weapon  can  be  used  against 
those  who,  in  defiance  of  the  principles  of  humanity 
and  righteousness,  exploit  the  weak  and  helpless, 
than  adequate  legislation,  A  minimum-wage  act, 
a  child-labor  law,  a  prohibition  bill,  will  not  work 
miracles,  but  if  reasonably  enforced  will  add  much 
to  the  material  and  moral  welfare  of  society,  and 
will  extend  the  reign  of  God  in  human  life. 

Commercial  Life 

The  merchant  may  find  in  commercial  life  a  splen- 
did sphere  for  the  working  out  of  this  important 
principle  of  the  kingdom.  Among  the  employees 
of  his  store,  God  has  given  him  an  opportunity  to 
put  into  practical  operation  the  second  principle  of 
the  kingdom.  It  is  his  high  privilege  to  say  in  the 
words  of  Jesus,  "  T  am  in  the  midst  of  you  as  he 
that  servoth."  Dominated  by  tin's  principle  of  serv- 
ice, he  may  not  only  bring  the  kingdom  of  God  nigh 


f5l 


;lli 


-r^ 


98        THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD's  PRAYER 


1;. 


1 1 


i  I 


I  ( 


m 


rl 


unto  the  men  and  women  who  are  under  his  roof, 
but  by  his  example  elevate  the  standard  of  commer- 
cial life  in  every  establishment  of  the  city  in  which 
he  lives. 

It  may  be  said  that  the  principle  of  service  is  im- 
practical in  business,  that  tlie  man  who  would  seri- 
ously attempt  to  put  it  into  practical  operation  would 
soon  find  his  business  ?n  the  hands  of  a  receiver.  If 
that  contention  be  warranted  by  the  facts  of  com- 
mercial life,  then  it  is  evident  that  the  greatest  field 
of  modern  life  is  still  untouched  by  the  spirit  of 
Christianity,  and  it  becomes  the  bounden  duty  of  the 
members  of  the  kingdom  to  unite  in  the  transforma- 
tion of  commerce.  That  contention,  however,  is  by 
no  means  proved.  Many  men,  who  have  achieved 
success  in  commercial  and  industrial  life,  have  been 
able  to  maintain  their  ideals  and  to  work  out  the 
principle  of  service  among  their  employees  as  well 
as  among  the  general  public.  We  are  not  to  wait 
until  the  millennium  has  come  before  we  begin 
practising  the  principle  of  service,  but  in  our  present 
economic  order  we  are  to  work  with  the  end  in  view 
that  the  kingdoms  of  commerce  and  industry  may 
come  under  the  law  of  the  kingdom  of  God. 

The  Professions 

When  we  pass  from  the  great  field  of  commerce 
and  industry  to  the  other  sections  of  our  social 
order,  the  problem  of  applying  the  principle  of  serv- 
ice IS  not  so  serious. 


■Is^Pii;* 


ffl 


THE    PRtNCIPLL   OF    SKRVICE 


99 


The  teacher  in  our  public  schools  and  colleges  finds 
it  comparatively  easy  to  say  in  the  words  of  Jesus, 
"  T  am  in  the  midst  of  you  as  he  that  serveth." 
jVl.'.ny  of  our  noblest  young  men  and  women  find 
in  the  teaching  profession  a  magnificent  field  for 
the  very  highest  and  most  altruistic  service.  There 
are  teachers  in  the  foreign  quarters  of  our  cities 
who  are  fired  by  the  very  sacrificial  passion  of  our 
Lord.  By  the  strength  and  beauty  of  tlieir  person- 
alities they  are  doing  a  work  of  inestimable  value 
for  the  kingdom  of  God  among  the  children  of  for- 
eign-born parents. 

What  is  true  of  the  teacher  is  also  true  in  respect 
to  the  nurse  and  the  physician,  the  Christian  minis- 
ter and  the  journalist.  Even  our  political  institu- 
tions, which  are  so  severely  criticized  by  those  who 
sit  in  the  seat  of  the  scornful,  are  democratic  and. 
to  that  extent,  Christian,  for  democracy  is  based  on 
the  assumption  of  the  equal  rights  of  man.  The 
candidate  for  political  honors  alwi'vs  professes  to 
be  actuated  by  altruistic  motives.  lie  wishes  to 
serve  his  party,  to  advance  the  interests  of  his  con- 
stituency, to  work  for  his  country ;  and  though  we 
often  accept  his  professions  with  the  proverbial 
grain  of  snlt.  yet  we  would  not  elect  him  if  we  be- 
lieved that  his  moiive  was  a  purely  selfish  one.  It 
may  be  true,  as  has  been  said,  that  we  are  a  nation 
of  backsliders.  Justice,  equality,  and  fraternity  are 
the  foundation-stones  of  our  commonwealth,  and 
tlie  field  of  politics  offers  no  insuperable  difficulties 


J! 

If 

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lOO      TlIK  SOCIAL  IDliALS  Ol-  THE  LORd"s  PRAYER 


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to  the  practice  of  the  ideals  of  the  kingdom.  Price 
Collier,  in  his  "  Germany  and  the  Germans,"  writes : 
"  It  is  wholly  unfitting,  and  always  demoralizing, 
when  the  priest,  the  politician,  and  the  journalist 
turn  their  attention  to  private  gain.  Any  one  of 
these  three  who  makes  a  great  fortune  out  of  his 
profession  is  damned  by  that  fact  alone.  The  only 
payment  beyond  a  living  that  these  three  should 
look  to  is,  respect,  consideration,  and  the  honor  of 
serving  the  state  unselfishly."  It  is  certainly  an 
encouraging  fact  tiiat  great  sections  of  our  social 
order  have  been  so  permeated  with  Christian  prin- 
ciples that  the  man  who  refuses  to  put  them  into 
execution  incurs  the  odium  of  society. 

Egoism  and  Solidarity 

The  Egoistic  Attitude  Toward  Life 

There  are  many  people,  and  we  often  count  them 
our  best  citizens,  who  deliberately  close  their  eyes 
to  the  world's  sin  and  misery.  They  surround 
themselves  with  congenial  friends,  good  literature, 
and  works  of  art  that  minister  to  their  sense  of  the 
beautiful.  Anything  that  would  ruffle  their  feelings 
or  disturb  their  repose  is  kept  at  arm's  length. 
They  are  deaf  to  the  cries  of  pain  and  bitter  sobs  of 
sorrow.  They  are  like  the  man  in  the  r  .rable  who 
was  roused  out  of  midnight  slumber  by  tne  persistent 
knocking  of  a  neighbor  with  a  request  for  three 
loaves  of  bread.     And  the  man  warmlv  tucked  in 


THE    PRINCIPLK   Ol-    SERVICE 


lOI 


bed,  awakened  from  dreamless  sleep,  was  most  imlig- 
nant  at  being  disturbed  at  such  an  unseemly  hour. 
And  to  his  needy  neighbor  he  sharply  rejoined: 
"  Trouble  me  not ;  the  door  is  now  shut ;  and  my 
children  are  with  me  in  bed.  I  cannot  rise  and 
give  thee.''  So  it  is  witli  many  well-dressed,  well- 
fed,  and  well-educated  people.  They  have  found 
liie  to  be  a  most  comfortable  blanket.  Their  larder 
is  lavishly  stocked  with  the  good  things  of  life. 
Their  children  are  warm  and  well  nourished.  Why 
should  they  be  disturbed  by  the  beggar  Lazarus  and 
his  brood  who  come  knocking  and  seeking  alms? 
They  practically  answer  the  question  by  turning  a 
deaf  ear  and  a  blind  eye  to  everything  that  would 
disturb  their  enjoyment  of  material  things. 

The  'Anszver  of  Solidarity 

The  answer  to  the  egoist'  nception  of  life  is 
the  fact  of  solidarity.  There  i.  j  higher  appeals  for 
a  life  of  service,  but  few  that  are  more  unanswer- 
able. A  great  apostle  once  wrote :  "  And  whether 
one  member  suffer,  all  the  members  suffer  w'h  it." 
Is  it  not  true  that  the  whole  race  is  so  united  in  the 
mystic  bond  of  brotherhood  that  the  degradation 
and  suffering  of  one  member  of  the  social  order 
affects  all?  That  is  an  argument  for  the  applica- 
tion of  Jesus'  principle  of  service.  In  the  family 
life  we  readily  recognize  the  sense  of  solidarity. 
Rut  is  it  not  equally  true  in  the  community  group, 
that  if  one  member  suffer,  all  suffer?     Take  the 


i:. 


li' 


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I02       I  UK  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LOKu'ii  I'KAYICR 


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£5   ' 

1 1    y- 


slums  of  our  city  as  an  illustration.  They  are  the 
breeding-()laces  of  disease,  of  crime,  of  disorder. 
But  is  it  not  true  that  they  affect  and  infect  every 
part  of  the  social  body?  The  winds  of  heaven 
cairy  the  germs  of  disease  from  the  slums  to  the 
children  of  the  boulevards.  The  flies,  fattened  upon 
the  filth  in  the  back  alleys,  know  no  social  bound- 
aries; they  carry  contagion  as  readily  to  the  rich 
as  to  the  poor.  An  industrial  conflict  involves  the 
whole  community  in  suffering.  The  drink  traffic 
and  the  social  evil  mar  the  liealth,  the  peace,  the 
happiness  of  hundreds  of  others,  and  the  innocent 
suffer  with  the  guilty.  The  whole  race  is  bound  up 
together.  For  weal  or  for  wo  we  are  all  in  the 
same  boat.  This  is  tlie  answer  to  that  selfish  class 
who  fold  their  arms  in  the  presence  of  wrong  social 
conditions.  It  is  also  the  clarion  call  to  service,  and 
sacrifice  if  need  be,  for  the  common  good. 


Concl 


usion 


To  serve,  let  us  begin  by  making  an  earnest  study 
of  the  life  of  the  community  in  which  we  live.  Are 
the  laws  reasonably  enforced?  What  are  the  condi- 
tions that  surround  the  life  of  our  children  in  the 
public  schools,  in  their  recreations  and  home  life? 
Wliat  are  our  industrial  conditions?  What  about 
sanitation  and  the  tenement  evil?  Have  we  a  red- 
light  district?  Are  our  moving-picture  shows  con- 
ducive to  good  morals  ?     In  thinking  out  this  prin- 


-v;  '..:  r*»'^5r--: 


THE     'RINCIPLE   OF    SERVICF 


'".^ 


ciple  of  the  kinf^dom,  let  us  ponder  the  words  ol 
Emerson  in  his  essry  on  Napoleon :  "  As  long  as  our 
civilization  is  essentially  one  of  property,  of  fences, 
of  exclusiveness,  it  will  be  mocked  by  delusions. 
Our  riches  will  leave  us  sick ;  there  will  be  bitterness 
in  our  laughter,  and  our  wine  will  burn  in  our 
moutlis.  Only  that  good  profits  which  we  can  taste 
with  all  doors  open,  and  which  serves  all  men." 


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^^^h^^^^^^^^m^'w^^^^mMmmw^i^ 


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1! 


IX 


THE  KINGDOM  AND  THE  PRINCIPLE  CF 
SACRIFICE 

"  9ri|g  fcrngbora  camt,    3ri|g  foill  be  bone,  as  in  Ijea&en,  so 
aneactii" 

It  needs  but  a  superficial  study  of  New  Testa- 
ment literature  to  convince  the  reader  that  sacrifice 
was  an  im{X)rtant  principle  of  life  in  the  esteem  of 
Jesus  and  of  the  early  church.  The  Gospels  reix>rt 
Jesus  as  making  sacrifice  the  condition  and  tes'  of 
discipleship,  and  it  was  not  long  before  the  cross 
upon  which  our  Lord  was  cn'cified  became  the  chief 
symbol  of  Christianity.  So  deeply  was  the  idea  of 
sacrifice  embedded  in  the  thought  of  early  Chris- 
tianity that  it  gave  rise  to  abnormal  religious  move- 
ments in  which  sacrifice  expressed  itself  in  fanatical 
and  often  absurd  acts  of  conduct.  Sacrifice  be- 
came an  end  in  itself,  and  men  eagerly  sought  mar- 
tyrdom, buried  them.:elvcs  in  convents  and  monas- 
teries, and  tortured  their  bodies,  under  the  belief 
that  such  ascetic  acts  were  highly  pleasing  to  the 
Deity. 

Christianity  is  not  peculiar  among  the  religions  of 
the  world  in  establishment  of  this  center  of  em- 
104 


imrnMrnsM^M.- 


niF.  PRiNciri.i-:  oi-  sairifick 


105 


pliasis.  All  the  religions,  from  the  lowest  to  the 
highest,  have  been  based  upon  sacrifice.  As  far 
back  as  the  light  of  history  penetrates  we  see  men 
journeying  to  sacred  shrines,  to  mountain  peaks, 
and  there  kindling  their  fires  and  offering,  now  a 
bullock,  now  a  sheep,  and  now  a  human  life  as  a 
sacrifice  to  the  higher  powers.  It  is  evident  that 
there  is  much  sacrifice  that  cannot  be  defended 
either  on  ethical  or  on  social  grounds. 


When  Sacrifice  is  Morally  Justifiable 

It  may  perhaps  clear  the  way  for  a  better  under- 
standing of  the  principle  of  sacrifice  as  taught  by 
Jesus,  if  first  o'  all  we  consider  the  question,  When 
is  sacrifice  morally  justifiable? 

Renouncement  of  Some  Good  Not  Sufficient 

Mere  renunciaiion  of  some  good  on  the  part  of 
the  individual  does  not  constitute  a  mo-al  act  of 
self-sacrifice.  There  must  be  a  positive  end  in  mind 
to  justify  the  abandonment  of  the  real  good  which 
has  been  sacrificed.  That  end  must  be  of  greater 
good  than  that  which  has  been  renouncetl.  else 
there  has  been  a  waste  of  goodness.  The  indi- 
vidual cannot  sacrifice  to  promote  his  own  personal 
welfare.  A  man  may  deny  himself  many  material 
comforts  to  the  end  that  in  his  old  age  he  may  be 
able  to  retire  from  active  work  and  live  on  the  fruits 
of  his  industry ;  but  that  self-denial  on  his  part  must 

H 


tttamiMiM 


Ll  jyBi.^.'^l«kl^&.%i^:^^^Sffi 


106     THE  SOCIAL  ii)i:.\i.s  or  Till-:  lord's  prayer 


hi 

M 


w 


pi 


not   be   confounded    with    the   moral   act   of   self- 
sacrifice. 

Promotion  of  the  Common  Good  Required 

Self-sacrifice,  to  be  morally  justifiable,  must  pro- 
mote  the   common   good.      This   presupposes   two 
things,    h'irst.  tlie  reality  of  the  common  life.    That 
man,  as  a  member  of  a  social  group,  shares  his  life 
with  others,  influences  cither  for  good  or  for  evil 
the  lives  of  others,  and  in  turn  is  influenced  by  the 
life  of  the  community  in  which  he  moves,  is  a  fact 
that  needs  but  to  be  stated  to  be  recognized  as  true. 
As  society  becomes  increasingly  complex,  the  scope 
of  the  common  life  is  widened.    The  modern  worl  I 
is  gaining  what  Walter   Besant  called  a  sense  ^f 
humanity.    In  the  past,  countries,  and  even  parishes 
of  the  same  country,  in  a  very  real  sense  were  in- 
ilependcnt  of  all  the  rest.     To-day  the  middle  wall 
of  partition  has  been  broken  down.     New  and  im- 
proved methods  of  transportation  have  brought  the 
ends  of  the  world  within  walking  distance  of  each 
other.     The  telegraph  has  made  it  possible  for  us 
to  read  to-da>  what  happened  yesterday  in  the  most 
remote  sections  of  the  world.    Steam  and  electricity 
have  made  the  earth  a  neighborhood,  and  every  man 
a  calling  acquaintance.     Out  of  all  the  new  condi- 
tioi.o  created  by  modern  inventions  and  discoveries, 
tiisre  has  come  a   sense  of  the   solidarity  of  the 
Ir.iman  race,  the  reality  of  the  common  life  that  we 
share  with  all  the  peoples  of  the  world. 


.i«»4^i 


THE   PRINCIPLE  OF  SACRIFICE 


107 


A  second  assumption  is  that  the  common  good  is 
of  more  permanent  and  universal  value  than  the 
good  of  the  individual.  In  a  genuine  act  of  self- 
sacrifice  the  individual  subordinates  himself  for  the 
welfare  of  the  larger  group  of  v/hich  he  is  a  mem- 
ber. He  loses  his  own  life  in  order  that  society  may 
gain  a  larger  life.  The  final  test  then  of  any  act  of 
self-sacrifice  is  whether  or  not  it  promotes  human 
welfare ;  inis  is  based  on  two  assumptions,  the  reality 
of  the  common  life  and  the  suprema-y  of  the  com- 
mon good  over  the  good  of  the  individual. 


The  Life  of  Jesus  an  Illustration 

In  the  life  of  Jesus  we  have  the  finest  illustration 
of  that  self-sacrifice  which  justifies  itself  through 
its  promotion  of  the  common  good.  He  had  taught 
the  disciples  to  pray,  "  Thy  kingdom  come ;  thy  will 
be  done,  as  in  heaven,  so  on  earth."  The  answer 
to  that  prayer  meant  the  reign  of  God  in  human 
life,  the  transformation  of  all  the  institutions  of 
our  social  order  by  Christian  ideals,  the  regeneration 
of  society  as  well  as  of  individuals.  It  meant  that 
man's  personal,  family,  social,  commercial,  and  in- 
dustrial iclations  should  be  permeated  by  the  ideals 
of  love  and  sei-vice.  In  short,  it  meant  the  bringing 
of  the  world  with  all  its  varied  interests  into  har- 
mony with  God's  will.  This  that  Jesus  put  into 
words  he  was  already  telling  in  the  language  of  his 
life. 


1^;^:^:^ 


108      Till-:  SOCIAL  lOr^ALS  OF  THE  LORDS  PRAYER 


^•^         ^ 


St  i 


I 


The  Significance  of  the  Temptation 

Ironi  the  very  beginning  of  his  public  ministry, 
Jesus  foresaw  that  the  kingdom  of  love  and  right- 
eousness could  be  established  in  an  evil  world  only 
at  the  cost  of  bloodshed  and  death.  His  ideals  were 
so  foreign  to  the  ideals  of  the  age  in  which  he 
lived  that  the  man  who  seriously  attempted  to 
realize  them  would  be  compelled  to  sacrifice  kindred 
and  friends  and  even  life  itself. 

It  was  this  consciousness  that  gave  to  the  temp- 
tation in  the  wilderness  its  tragic  significance.  It  is 
recorded  that  after  the  tempter  had  shown  him 
the  kingdoms  of  the  world  and  the  glory  thereof, 
he  said :  "  All  these  things  will  I  give  thee,  if  thou 
wilt  fall  down  and  worship  me"  (1  tt.  4  :  8-10). 
The  temptation  was  not  to  abandor  the  goal  upon 
which  our  Lord  had  set  his  gaze.  It  was  rather  the 
temptation  to  take  the  short  cut  in  reaching  the 
goal.  It  involved  compromise,  adopting  unrighteous 
luethods  for  good  ends.  It  meant  following  the 
line  of  least  resistance,  of  conceding  something  to 
the  false,  worldly  ideals  of  the  times.  It  meant 
keeping  the  cross  in  the  background.  On  the  moun- 
taintop  Jesus  met  the  tempter  and  conquered  him. 
In  commanding  tones  he  cried,  "  Get  thee  behind 
me,  Satan."'  He  absolutely  refused  to  take  the 
short  cut  to  the  kingdoms  of  the  world.  He  saw 
that  the  redemption  of  the  world  would  be  at  no 
loss  a  cost  than  tlie  sacrifice  ot  his  own  life.    He 


h 


-  Xw'^i^  J^ 


Mii^-.^ 


Tllli    I'KIN'CIPLE  OF    SACRIFICE 


109 


deliberately  chose  the  path  of  suffering,  the  way  by 
the  cross.  The  other  road  might  lead  to  empire 
meteoric  in  its  rise  and  fall,  but  nev^er  to  his  goal. 

The  Revelation  of  Self-sacrifice  at  Cccsarea  Philippi 

The  temptation  which  assailed  Jesus  in  the  wilder- 
ness met  him  in  different  forms  all  through  his  brief 
ministry.  At  Cxsarea  Philippi,  after  Peter  had 
V'iced  the  great  confession,  "Thou  art  the  Christ, 
the  Son  of  the  living  God,"  it  is  recorded  that  "  from 
that  time  forth  began  Jesus  to  show  unto  his  dis- 
ciples, how  that  he  must  go  unto  Jerusalem,  and 
suffer  many  things  of  the  elders  and  chief  priests 
and  scribes,  and  l>e  killed,  and  he  raised  again  the 
third  day"  (Matt.  16  :  21).  How  loath  the  dis- 
ciples were  to  accept  this  principle  of  the  kingdom 
is  clear  in  the  attitude  of  Peter.  When  he  hears 
Jesus  speak  of  suffering  antl  death,  he  takes  the 
Master  aside,  and  begins  to  rebuke  him  :  "  The  cross 
is  not  for  thee,  O  Lord :  be  it  far  from  thee ;  spare 
thyself"  (Matt.  16:22).  There  you  have  the 
jiliilosophy  of  life  which  puts  self  first,  which  says. 
"  I  must  look  out  for  number  one."  It  is  that 
same  egoistic  view  of  life  which  is  to-day  respon- 
sible for  so  much  sodden  misery  and  injustice.  It 
is  significant  that  Jesus  replied  to  Peter  in  the  same 
way  that  he  had  addressed  the  tempter  in  the  wilder- 
ness several  years  before,  "  Get  thee  behind  me, 
Satan." 


'■f 


'^.g^^f-^gsw;-'^^ 


JBhL 


I  lO      THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  Of  THE  LORD's  PILWER 


r 


I 


The  Crucifixion  the  Culmination  of  Self-sacrificing 
Love 

The  devotion  of  Jesus  to  the  kingdom  found  its 
cuhnination  in  his  death  upon  the  cross.  It  did  not 
come  to  him  as  a  surprise.  Even  in  the  happy, 
golden  days  of  the  early  Galilean  ministry  when  he 
was  followed  by  enthusiastic  and  shouting  multi- 
tudes, and  before  his  social  and  religious  message 
had  aroused  the  antagonism  of  the  Pharisees  and 
Sadducees,  the  shadow  of  the  cross  was  upon  him. 
The  cross  was  not  an  accident.  It  was  the  inevi- 
table outcome  of  his  fidelity  to  the  principles  of  the 
gospel  of  the  kingdom.  It  was  also  a  necessary  ele- 
ment in  his  saving  mission.  The  power  of  sin  in 
the  lives  of  individuals  could  be  broken  only  at  tlie 
cost  of  his  own  life.  Tlie  ideals  of  the  kingdom 
involved  such  a  radical  change,  not  only  in  the  lives 
of  men,  but  also  in  the  social  order,  that  the  only 
way  he  could  get  those  ideals  before  the  world 
was  to  die  for  them.  As  Founder  and  Head  of  the 
new  order  it  was  expedient  that  he  should  suffer 
even  to  the  death,  leaving  to  those  who  were  the 
conscripts  of  the  kingdom  an  example  that  they 
should  follow  in  his  footsteps.  Men  needed  to  learn 
the  love  of  God,  the  absolute  worth  of  every  human 
individual,  the  priceless  value  of  the  kingdom  of 
God,  the  terrible  reality  of  sin  as  the  obstruction 
of  the  kingdom,  the  necessity  of  any  sacrifice  to 
promote  tlie  common  good.     b>om  his  voluntary 


m^^lr^: 


THE    PKINCIPLL:    of    SAtKll  ICIi 


III 


death  upon  the  cross  the  world  has  learned  these 
truths  as  it  would  not  have  learned  them  from 
any  words  he  might  have  spoken.  Thus  in  a  very 
real  sense  Jesus  died  for  our  sins  according  to  the 
Scriptures,  and  gave  his  life  a  ransom  for  many. 


The  Principle  of  Sacrifice  Binding  Upon  All 

This  principle  of  sacrifice,  which  was  so  finely  il- 
lustrated in  his  own  life,  Jesus  made  obligatory  upon 
all  who  would  be  his  disciples.  They  must  drink 
his  cup  and  be  baptized  with  his  baptism. 

The  Kingdom  First,  at  Any  Price 

The  new  order  is  of  such  supreme  value  that 
physical  life  with  its  comforts  is  to  be  sacrificed 
without  hesitation  if  such  sacrifice  be  in  the  inter- 
ests of  the  kingdom.  (Matt.  6  :  31-34.)  Even  the 
nearest  and  dearest  human  ties  must  not  be  per- 
mitted to  hinder  the  progress  of  the  kingdom.  (Luke 
14  :  26.)  This  does  not  mean  that  we  are  literally 
to  hate  our  kindred,  but  it  does  mean  that  the 
kingdom  of  God  must  be  first,  and  that  if  we  find 
ourselves  in  a  position  where  fidelity  to  the  kingdom 
means  the  sacrifice  of  social  and  family  ties  and 
even  of  life  itself,  for  the  supreme  good  the  lesser 
goods  of  life  must  be  abandoned. 

Jesus  foresaw  that  the  new  wine  of  the  gos- 
pel of  the  kingdom  would  burst  the  ancient  bottles, 
that  the  triumph  of  t'.ie  kingdom  would  involve  the 


11 

-3  J 


1 


M 


;itf 


m 


.  dl-.   -  «.. 


*ir 


Hf; 


pi 

II 


112      Tin-:  SOCIAL  IDKALS  OF  TlIK  LOUD's  PRAYER 

destruction  of  an  ancient  civilization,  lie  foresaw 
that  the  proclamation  of  his  message  would  involve 
the  first  group  of  disciples  in  strife,  hatred,  blood- 
shed, and  death.  (Matt.  lo  :   16,  17,  22,  34.) 

'/he  Kingdom  to  Come  Thruugh  Suffering 

That  suffering  should  he  the  condition  of  progress 
IS  not  a  strange  law  nor  one  foreign  to  human  ex- 
perience.    In  one  of  the  days  of  Passion  Week,  per- 
hai)s  with  the  intention  of  preparing  the  minds  of 
the  disciples  for  the  shock  of  the  crucifixion,  Jesus 
called  their  attention  to  the  fact  tliat  even  in  nature 
we  have  an  illustration  of  life  through  death:  "  Ex- 
cept a  grain  of  wheat  fall  in  the  earth  and  die,  it 
abideth  by  itself  alone:  but  if  it  die,  it  beareth  much 
fruit"   (John   12  :  24).     That  social  progress  and 
the  salvation  of  men  have  come  tiirough  love's  suf- 
fering can  easily  be  shown.    The  laws  which  guar- 
antee liberty  and  promote  human  progress  have  been 
made  possible  by  conflict,  bloodshed,  and  often  at 
the  cost  of  life.     Liberty  of  conscience,  the  right 
of  the  individual  to  have  a  voice  in  the  affairs  of 
government,  the  abolition  of  slaver\-.  trial  by  jury- 
all  of  these  things,  which  we  accept  as  a  matter  of 
course,  we  owe  to  men  who  have  fought  and  suf- 
fered, and  have  counted  not  their  lives  dear  unto 
themselves.    The  roots  of  our  present-day  civiliza- 
tion go  down  into  a  soil  which  has  been  watered  by 
the  tears  and  blood  of  men.     The  poet  expressed 
.'<  true  thouglit  when  he  sang: 


^x^^;M^mmm.t!irm.. 


THE    I'KIXCIPLE   OF   SACRIKICK  II3 

And  ali  through  life  I  sec  a  cross 
Where  sons  qf  God  yield  up  thi  ir  breath. 

There  is  no  gain  except  by  loss, 
There  is  no  life  except  by  death, 
There  is  no  vision  but  by  faith. 
Nor  glory  but  by  bearing  shame. 
Nor  justice  but  by  taking  blame. 

7  he  Early  Church  Takes  U[>  the  Cross 

The  members  of  the  early  church  gave  earnest 
heed  to  the  words  of  Jesus.  So  deep  was  the  im- 
|)ression  of  his  death  that  they  made  it  the  central 
fact  of  their  preaching.  In  Calvary  they  saw  the 
supreme  lessons  of  love  and  sacrifice  written  in 
blood.  The  preaching  of  the  cross  was  to  the  Jews 
a  stumbling-block  and  to  the  Greeks  foolishness; 
but  to  those  who  had  a-iswered  the  call  of  Calvary 
the  cross  was  a  dynamic  principle  that  would  redeem 
both  individuals  and  society  from  sin.  The  up- 
lifted cross,  with  its  ideals  of  disinterested  love, 
service,  and  sacrifice  would  yet  draw  all  men  into 
the  kingdom. 

The  cross  was  always  present  with  them.  It  was 
the  central  message  of  the  great  apostle,  (i  Cor. 
2:2;  Gal.  6  :  14.)  John  argues  that  in  sacrifice 
we  have  the  highest  expression  of  love,  (i  John 
3  :  16.)  Peter  sees  in  the  Christian  life  the  cail 
of  the  cross,  (i  Peter  2  :  21.)  It  was  by  suffer- 
ing that  the  church  was  able  to  put  to  rout  ancient 
paganism  with  its  unspeakable  abominations  and 
cruelties.     The  way  to  victory  was  by  way  of  the 


■-Si 

V 


-  ^^^^:!'riyiii^.--i?^^^i^s?^^ 


I  14      Tllli  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LOUD  S  PRAYER 

cross,  Tertullian  concludes  his  apolog>'  to  his  per- 
secutors with  these  words :  "  All  your  refinements  of 
cruelty  accomplish  nothing.  On  the  contrary,  they 
serve  as  a  lure  to  this  sect.  Our  number  increases 
the  more  you  persecute  us.  The  blood  of  the 
Christians  is  the  seed  of  a  new  harvest."  Is  it  any 
wonder  that  with  such  a  spirit  Christianity  broke 
down  the  most  violent  opposition,  and  in  less  than 
three  hundred  years  from  the  time  that  the  Founder 
had  been  nailed  upon  a  cross,  seated  itself  upon  the 
throne  of  the  emperors,  and  fastened  the  cross 
above  the  eagle  ? 


The  Cross  in  Modern  Life 

For  centuries  men  have  been  praying :  "  Thy  king- 
dom come ;  thy  will  be  done,  as  in  heaven,  so  on 
earth."  That  prayer  has  been  answered  in  part. 
The  kingdom  has  been  coming  all  through  the  cen- 
turies, but  conditions  are  still  very  far  from  the 
ideal. 

Great  evils  are  still  embedded  in  societ}  The 
legalized  liquor  traffic  every  year  slays  its  hundreds 
of  thousands  of  strong  men  and  crowds  our  jails 
and  penitentiaries  with  criminals  and  ofifenders 
against  law  and  order.  Notwithstanding  ti.e  enor- 
mous increase  in  the  wealth  of  society,  millions  of 
people  are  still  cursed  by  poverty.  So  far  are  the 
nations  of  the  world  from  accepting  the  law  of 
brotherhood  that  at  the  time  of  this  writing  one- 


^<^../.^J^-  •- 


'^^ 


Tlir:    PKlNCli'Li;   Ol-    SACKlFrCE 


1 1 


half  of  the  world  is  at  war,  and  the  sacrifices  of 
Hfe  and  treasure  are  such  a?  to  stagger  humanity. 
The  reign  of  God  has  not  yet  come  in  industry  and 
commerce  and  government. 

The  words  of  Jesus  are  just  as  applicable  to-day 
as  they  were  when  first  spoken:  "  If  any  man  will 
come  after  me,  let  him  deny  himself,  and  take  up 
his  cross  and  follow  me."    So  long  as  the  evil  exists 
men  must  fight,  and  to  fight  is  to  suffer.     Matthew 
Arnold  has  expressed  his  onviction  "•  that  the  secret 
of  the  gospel  is  that  word  of  Jesus:  '  lie  that  loveth 
his  life  shall   lose  it,  and  he  tliai   hateth   his  Hfe 
shall  keep  it  unto  life  eternal.'"     The  mission  of 
the  church  is  to  convert  the  kingdoms  of  this  world 
into  the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord  and  his  Christ.     If 
the  church  loves  she  will  serve,  and  the  price  of 
service   is   suffering.      Like  the   early  church,   she 
must  have  tlie  baptism  of  blood  upon  her  brow  if 
she  is  to  convince  the  world  of  diJnterested  love 
and  be  successful  in  bringing  in  the  reign  of  God 
in  human  life.     It  is  the  cafl  of  Calvary  that  the 
church  must  heed  if  God's  kingdom  is  to  come  and 
his  will  be  done  on  eardi  as  in  heaven. 


SA 


!%■:..  " 


^..^^Wf^t;.*- 


i  J 


m 


I 


THE  CRY  FOR  IJREAD  AND  THE  SOCIAL 
IDEALS  OF  JESUS 

"  ^i&c  US  tlfiB  ^•     our  bailo  breab  " 

It  is  written.  "  Man  shall  not  live  by  bread  alone,"' 
but  without  bread  he  cannot  live.  Urcad  is  fre- 
quently used  in  a  figurative  sense  in  the  Scriptures, 
but  practically  all  commentatoi-s  arc  agreed  that  in 
this  prayer  the  word  is  to  be  taken  literally.  Me 
who  had  compassion  upon  the  hungry  multitudes 
in  the  desert,  and  found  food  to  sustain  their  faint- 
ing bodies,  saw-  no  incongruity  in  combining  with 
the  petition  for  the  coming  of  the  kingdom  of  God 
on  earth  a  prayer  for  daily  bread. 

The  Greek  word  e^-'ousion.  translated  "  daily," 
is  not  found  in  the  N'ew  Testament  except  in  the 
two  versions  of  the  Lord's  Prayer ;  and  as  the  word 
does  not  occur  in  any  other  Greek  writing,  scholars 
have  been  compelled  to  depend  upon  the  etymolog>' 
of  the  word  to  arrive  at  its  ineaning.  Two  marginal 
readings  suggested  in  the  Revised  Version  are  "  our 
needful  bread "  and  "  our  bread  for  the  coming 
day."  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  petition 
emphasizes  moderation  in  asking  the  heavenly  Father 

1  [O 


M^.^  ■';  ■' 


\\\v.  cKv  lok  i!i<i-..\r) 


lu  supply  our  nutcrial  vvaiit«.     \Vc  arc  not  to  ww 
ticipate  the  iiccfis  of  next  year,  so  long  as  the  needs 
of  to-day  are  adequately  satisfied.     We  are  not  to 
as!    for  the  Itixurie;  of  life  while  so  many  of  our 
brothers  arc  living:  without  the  necessities. 


fi 


The  Problem  uf  the  Hungry  Masses 

I5y  the  hungry  masses  is  meant  those  who  are 
badly  housed  and  without  a  sufficiency  of  food  and 
clothing  to  .-.atisfy  their  most  elemental  material 
needs.  That  there  should  be  multitudes  of  such 
people  in  countries  as  rich  as  America  and  Great 
Britain  is  surely  a  reproach  upon  our  Christian 
civilization. 

Statistics  on  Prevalence  of  Poverty 

While  statistics  are  not  always  reliable,  the  facts 
presented  by  careful  investigators,  even  alter  a 
lil>eral  discount  has  been  made,  are  appalling  in  the 
awful  revelation  of  the  fearful  depths  of  poverty 
i.i  which  so  'r.'ny  of  our  fellow  men  are  living. 
Mr.  Hunter,  writing  on  conditions  in  this  coun- 
try, states :  "  There  are  probably  in  fairly  prosper- 
ous years  no  less  than  ten  million  persons  in  poverty  ; 
tliat  is  to  say,  underfed,  underclothed,  and  poorly 
housed.  Of  these,  about  four  million  are  public 
paupers.  Over  two  million  working  men  are  un- 
employed from  four  to  six  months  in  the  year.  ,  . 
Nearly   half   of   the    families    in   the   country   are 


ii8     THE  sociAi.  ini;.\j,s  of  thi-:  lord's  pravc;r 


propertylcss.  Over  one  million  seven  lumdrerl  thou- 
sand little  children  are  forced  to  become  wa^-e- 
earners  when  they  should  still  be  at  school."  ^ 

ATr.  Spargo.  after  giving  statistics  of  the  exam- 
ination of  school  children  in  different  cities,  con- 
cludes :  ••  Massing  the  figures  given  from  New  York, 
Philadelphia,  Buffalo,  and  Chicago,  we  get  a  total 
of  40,746  children  examined,  of  which  number 
14,121,  or  34.65  per  cent,  either  went  breakfastless 
to  school,  or  got  misen-bly  poor  breakfc;>.s  of  bread, 
or  tea,  or  coffee.  .  .  Tlie  results  certainly  tend  to 
show  that  the  estimate,  that  fully  two  million  chil- 
dren of  school  age  in  the  United  States  arc  oadlv 
underfed,  is  not  exaggerated."  - 

That  conditions  arc  even  mo'-*.-  deplorable  in  Great 
Britain,  where  society  is  more  congested  and  com- 
petition keener,  is  the  testimony  of  many  writers. 
One  such  testimony  will  suffice.  Frederick  Har- 
rison says:  "  To  me  at  least  it  would  be  enough  to 
condemn  modern  society,  as  hardly  an  advance  on 
slavery  or  serfdom,  if  the  permanent  condition  of  in- 
dustry were  to  be  that  which  we  behold,  tlial  ninety 
per  cent  of  the  actual  producers  of  wealth  have  no 
house  that  they  can  call  their  own  beyond  the  end 
of  the  week:  have  not  a  bii  of  soil,  or  as  much  as  a 
room  that  belongs  to  them ;  have  nothing  of  value  of 
any  kind,  except  as  much  furniture  as  will  go  in  a 
cart:  have  the  precarious  chance  of  weekly  wages, 


1  "  Poverty,"   p.   337. 

=  "  The  r.iltcr  fry  of  the  Chiidron, 


p.  8  = 


Tin:    CRV    FOR    IJKEAU 


1  1') 


which  barely  suffice  to  keep  them  in  health,  and  are 
housed  for  the  most  part  in  places  that  no  man 
thinks  fit  for  his  horse;  are  separated  by  so  narrow 
a  margin  from  destitution,  (hnt  a  month  of  bad 
trade,  sickness,  or  unexpected  loss  brings  them  face 
to  face  with  hunger  and  pauperism."  ' 

If  these  figures  and  statements  of  conditions  in 
l^o  '■:  he  richest  countries  of  the  world  be  even 
approxi-.natel)  correct,  they  mean  that  millions  of 
i)('ii)le  are  living  below  the  poverty  line.  They 
mean  that  the  cry  for  bread  is  not  a  mere  figure  of 
speech,  but  is  a  cry  that  is  being  uttered  by  multi- 
tudes of  our  fellow  beings.  The  problem  of  the 
hungry  masses  is  one  of  the  most  insistent  problems 
that  confront  the  world  of  the  twentieth  century. 
Poverty  and  attendant  misery  are  sternly  present. 
Why  ?    Can  we  make  them  remove  ? 

Causes  of  Poverty 

The  causes  of  poverty  are  so  many  and  complex 
tl-.at  it  is  exceedingly  difficult  for  the  sociologist 
either  to  analyze  them,  or  to  state  dogmatically 
what  specific  evils  lead  to  certain  results.  For  ex- 
ample, statistics  may  give  lack  of  employment  as  a 
contributing  cause  of  the  poverty  of  a  cert::in  per- 
centage of  people,  but  that  lack  of  employment  may 
be  caused  by  intemperate  habits,  inefficiency,  or 
laziness. 

-"  National  and  Social  Problems,"  p.  68. 


1 


.41  '■ 
II 


ijo     I  III;  SOCIAL  IDEALS  oi-  1  HI-:  luru  s  praykr 

Statistics  as  to  Causes  of  Por'erty 

While  exact  analysis  may  be  impossible,  careful 
inves*igators  have  been  able  to  show  what  causes 
tend  to  produce  poverty.  Charles  Booth,  who  has 
made  careful  surveys  of  poverty  as  it  exists  in  the 
great  cities,  finds  twenty-three  principal  causes  of 
pauperism.  Mere  is  the  list:  "Crime,  vice,  drink, 
laziness,  pauper  associations,  heredity,  mental  dis- 
ease, temper,  incapacity,  early  marriage,  large 
family,  extravagance,  lack  of  work,  trade  misfor- 
tune, restlessness,  no  relation,  death  of  husband, 
de.sertion.  death  of  father  or  mother,  sickness,  acci- 
dent, ill  luck,  old  age."  Mr.  Booth  claims  that,  as 
causes,  old  age  stands  first,  sickness  next,  and  then 
comes  drink.* 

Defective  Character  and  IVro)!;/  Social  Conditions 

It  seems  to  be  plain  from  a  study  of  statistics  that 
the  two  principal  causes  of  poverty  are  defective 
character  and  wrong  social  conditions.  In  times 
fiast,  when  men  had  to  depend  solely  upon  manual 
labor  to  supply  the  necessities  of  life,  poverty  was 
perhaps  inevitable ;  but  the  modern  world,  through 
labor-saving  machinery,  has  solved  the  problem  of 
production.  The  fundamental  cause  of  poverty  to- 
day is  unequal  distribution,  and  that  is  connected 
with  wrong  social  conditions,  which  are  remediable. 
In  a  really  Christian  society,  in   which  the  three 

•"Pauperism  and  the  tndowinent  of  Old  Age,"  pp.  9,  148. 


I*'- 


'II Hi    CKV    FOU    HREAU 


121 


j,Teat  principles  of  the  kingdom— love,  service,  aii-l 
sacrifice— are  applied  to  life,  tliere  would  be  no 
need  of  men  taking  anxious  thought  over  what 
they  sliould  eat,  and  drink,  and  wherewithal  they 
should  be  clothed. 


Evil  Effects  of  Poverty 

While  it  is  not  correct  to  state  that  poverty  is  the 
root  of  all  evil,  there  is  no  doubt  that  if  we  could 
destroy  this  great  enemy  of  the  human  race,  a  brood 
of  evils  which  afflict,  degrade,  and  torment  all  classes 
in  society  would  be  slain  with  it.  The  relation  of 
poverty  to  prostitution,  intemperance,  crime,  child 
labor,  the  tenement  evil,  the  war  of  the  classes,  is  so 
vital  that  it  is  hardly  an  exaggeration  to  say  that 
poverty  is  the  mother  of  them  all. 

Upon  the  Children 

One  of  the  saddest  features  in  connection  with 
the  problem  of  poverty  is  that  the  burden  presses 
most  heavily  upon  the  little  children  in  the  homes  of 
the  poor.  Granting  that  much  poverty  is  due  to 
the  vices  of  the  parents,  the  little  children  who  are 
innocent  of  all  wrong-doing  must  suffer  with  the 
guilty.  There  is  no  more  pathetic  figure  in  modern 
life  than  the  slum  child,  underfed,  stunted  in  body 
and  mind,  surrounded  by  influences  that  are  vile  and 
dcii.vorali^ing.  and  forced  by  necessity  into  the  strag- 
gle for  bread  without  an>  adequate  equipment  of 
I 


IJJ       I  HE  SUCIAL  IIJLALS  dl   THE  I.ORD's  fUAVFR 

hudy  or  mind  fo-  that  stern  battle.  Can  we  wonder 
that  juvenile  crime  is  such  a  serious  problem  '•^  all 
our  cities?  Delinquency  '-  most  prolific  in  the  re- 
gion of  low  income.  !•"  the  crowded  dwellings 
of  the  poor  comes  the  greater  proportion  of  juvenile 
offense  and  failure. 

Physical  and  Moral  Effects 

Tliat  there  is  a  very  close  connection  between 
poverty  and  a  high  death-rate  is  evident.  Spargo,  in 
the  book  from  which  quotation  has  already  been 
made,  estimates  that  the  death-rate  of  the  poorest 
class  of  workers  is  three  and  a  half  times  as  great 
as  that  of  the  well-to-do,  and  that  in  tlie  United 
States  alone  poverty  is  responsible  for  the  sacri- 
fice of  eighty  thousand  infant  lives  every  year. 

Poverty  herds  people  in  unsanitary  tenements,  ex- 
posing tlicni  to  grave  pliysical  and  moral  dangers, 
aiul  drives  tlie  clii'.dren  into  the  dangerous  asso- 
ciations of  the  streets.  The  men,  escaping  from 
the  scjualid  and  clieerless  homes,  find  refuge  in  the 
only  social  center  thev  know,  the  liquor  saloon : 
wliile  the  girls,  seeking  gratification  of  that  social 
and  sexual  instinct  which  God  has  implanted  in  all 
human  beings,  turn  to  the  public  dance-halls,  where 
so  often  they  become  the  prey  of  the  vicious.  Pov- 
erty produces  a  fiabby  and  shiftless  character,  reck- 
less, despairing — the  raw  material  from  which  issues 
that  army  of  criminals  which  crowds  our  jails  and 
penitentiaries. 


^Sl 


J  HE    CKV    rOR    IJREAD 


123 


Remedies  for  Maladjustment 

Bread  Enough  and  to  Sparc 

There  are  some  who  dismiss  all  sense  of  respon- 
sibility for  the  hungry  masses  on  the  ground  that 
there  is  not  enough  bread  to  feed  all  the  people 
who  are  sitting  at  the  world's  dining-table.  Poverty 
is  therefore  a  shrewd  device  of  Mother  Nature  to 
limit  the  human  harvest,  and  to  cut  down  th  physic- 
ally and  morallv  unnt.  All  remedial  measures  are 
foredoomed  to  be  failures,  and  we  may  as  well 
accept  the  inevitable,  "  the  poor  we  shall  always 
have  with  us." 

There  is  just  one  objection  to  this  heartless  and 
hopeless  philosophy.  Jt  is  not  true.  There  is  bread 
enough  and  to  spare.  The  world  produces  more 
than  is  sufficient  to  satisfy  the  material  needs  of  all 
the  members  of  the  human  family.  In  hard  times, 
when  millions  of  people  are  living  on  short  rations, 
there  is  food  enough  and  clothing  enough  and  fuel 
enough  to  provide  for  all.  Indeed,  it  is  overpro- 
duction tliat  i?  often  the  occasion  of  what  is  called 
hard  times.  The  mills  close  down  because  the 
market  is  glutted  with  goods,  and  as  a  consequence 
thousands  are  thrown  out  of  employment  and  are 
without  the  means  to  btiy  the  very  things  whose 
abundance  has  made  it  impossible  for  them  to  con- 
tinue as  wage-earners.  The  real  problem  of  society 
to-day  is  not  production,  but  distribution.  It  is  the 
problem  of  ecjuali/ing  opportunity,  of  securing  a 


1  ■ 

5; 


1J4      'I'l'li  SOCIAL  lUliALS  OF  TIIK  l.OKU  ri  I'RAVER 


1^ 


more  equitable  distribution  of  the  goods  produced 
by  society,  of  making  it  impossible  for  a  small  group 
of  men  to  hold  the  choice  things  of  the  earth  and  live 
in  luxury  while  millions  are  without  the  necessities. 
In  short,  it  is  the  problem  of  social  justice. 

Inadequacy  of  Private  and  Public  Charity 

In  the  jxirable  of  the  Good  Samaritan  and  in  the 
picture  of  the  final  judgment  Jesus  made  charity 
the  test  of  a  religious  life.  Christianity  introduced 
into  the  ancient  world  a  spirit  of  compassion  for 
the  weak  and  suffering,  which  found  expression  in 
relief  agencies  to  feed  the  hungry,  clothe  the  naked, 
and  care  for  the  sick  and  helpless.  Some  of  the 
most  glowing  pages  in  the  history  of  the  Christian 
church  are  those  which  record  its  vast  organized 
philanthropic  agencies.  What  is  perhaps  of  more 
importance  is  the  fact  that  Christianity  has  so  per- 
meated the  governments  of  all  countries  with  its 
ideals  that  to-day  t!ie  state  is  increasingly  feeling 
and  meeting  the  responsibility  of  caring  for  the 
dependent  classes.  Never  in  the  history  of  the  world 
were  public  and  private  charities  on  such  a  gigantic 
scale  as  at  the  present  time. 

But  while  charity  has  done  much  to  palliate  the 
ev'ls  of  poverty,  as  a  solution  of  the  problem  it  is  alto- 
gether inadequate.  It  happens  not  infrequently  that 
charity,  instead  of  curbing  poverty,  breeds  paupers. 
All  who  have  to  do  with  the  administration  of  char- 
itable funds  can  testify  that  the  task  of  distributing 


TUli    CKY    FOR    J5REAU 


Ij: 


relief  without  impairing  the  self-respect  of  the  re- 
cipient and  putting  a  premium  upon  laziness  and 
shiftlessness,  recjuires  an  almost  superhuman  wis- 
dom and  insight.  The  best-laid  schemes  of  philan- 
thropy are  hopeless  before  a  problem  which  is,  in 
part  at  least,  the  outcome  of  wrong  social  conditions. 

Dez'dopment  of  a  Deeper  Sense  of  Social  Justice 

That  there  is  something  radically  wrong  with  our 
present  social  system  is  felt  by  most  people  who 
have  taken  the  trouble  to  think  at  all  seriously  upon 
the  subject.  The  class-conscious  working  man,  who 
scorns  the  various  panaceas  of  philanthropy  and 
cries,  "  We  want  justice,  not  charity,"  is  made  of 
finer  stuff  than  he  who  thinks  that  the  wrongs  of 
poverty  can  be  remedied  by  an  elalK»rate  system  of 
almsgiving.  That  the  common  good  is  often  sacri- 
ficed by  private  interests  is  evident  to  all  who  have 
studied  the  history  of  the  various  corporations  which 
have  sprung  up  in  such  numbers  during  the  past 
fifty  years. 

The  writer  does  not  wish  to  read  too  much  into 
the  content  of  the  petition,  "  Give  us  this  day  our 
daily  bread,''  but  he  agrees  with  Washington  Glad- 
den, that  a  revolution  would  be  wrought  in  our 
social,  industr.al.  and  commercial  life  if  everybody 
devoutly  oflfered  that  prayer  and  livctl  up  to  it. 
"  Our  bread  "  means  bread  that  we  have  earned. 
Bread  which  we  have  taken  from  others  through 
the   possession    of    unjust   j^rivilegcs    is    not   ours. 


126      'lllli  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD's  PRAYER 


in 


Bread  for  which  we  have  contributed  nothing  of 
value  to  society  is  not  ours.  Bread  which  we  have 
wrested  from  the  hard  and  underpaid  labor  of  men, 
women,  and  children  is  not  ours. 

One  of  the  first  and  most  necessary  steps  in  the 
solution  of  the  problem  of  poverty  is  to  get  men 
to  see  that  there  is  a  fundamental  social  injustice, 
a  wrong  which  ought  to  be  righted.  We  need  more 
men  in  public  life  who  will  stand,  as  did  the 
ancient  Hebrew  prophets,  as  the  champions  of  the 
poor.  There  is  nothing  more  important,  as  a  remedy 
for  maladjustment,  than  the  development  in  society 
of  a  deeper  sense  of  social  justice. 

A  Recognition  of  the  Fact  of  Brotherhood 

The  pronoun  "  us  "  as  used  in  the  petition  sug- 
gests that  the  race  is  a  unit,  that  we  are  all  united 
in  the  mystic  bond  of  brotherhood.  When  we  pray, 
"  Give  US  this  day  our  daily  bread,"  the  petition 
includes  not  simply  the  small  grcap  of  people  under 
our  roof ;  it  is  not  to  be  limited  even  to  the  people 
of  the  neighborhood  in  which  we  live.  The  prayer 
comprises  all  mankind.  If  tlie  family  across  the 
street  be  hungry  and  cold  antl  naked,  how  can  we 
pray,  "  Give  us  this  day  our  daily  bread,"  without 
making  haste  to  relieve  their  necessities?  If  wq 
live  under  a  social  system,  which  in  the  richest 
country  of  the  world  makes  it  possible  for  ten  mil- 
lions of  people  to  ])C  in  actual  want,  while  a  com- 
paratively few  families  are  rich  beyond  the  dreams 


1 


Till':    CKV    rOK    UKliAL) 


1-': 


of  avarice,  how  can  \vc  pray  that  prayer  without 
striving  to  bring  about  a  better  and  more  Christian 
social  order?  And  that  suggests  a  most  important 
remedy. 

Crystallisation  of  Jesus'  Teaching  into  Legislation 

Tlie  man  who  beheves  in  the  kingdom  of  God  on 
earth  must  enter  into  politics.  He  must  look  at 
great  public  questions,  not  from  the  standpoint  of 
goods,  but  of  men.  Whatever  legislation  is  likely 
to  conserve  life  and  promote  the  greatest  good  to  the 
greatest  number  should  have  his  support.  What- 
ever legislation  is  against  the  common  good  should 
meet  with  his  determined  and  fearless  opposition. 

As  a  member  of  the  kingdom  of  Gnd,  his  first 
concern  should  be  for  those  who  through  weakness 
or  inability  are  least  able  to  defend  themselves 
against  exploitation.  "  Women  and  children  first " 
is  the  law  of  the  sea.  It  is  also  the  law  of  the 
kingdom.  This  means  that  we  must  begin  with 
little  children,  and  see  to  it  that  .selfish  and  ruthless 
employers  of  labor  are  prevented  by  law  from  util- 
izing their  labor  in  mill  and  shop  and  thus  depriving 
them  of  the  rights  of  education  and  recreation. 
There  is  no  more  serious  problem  before  the  Chris- 
tian to-day  than  the  problem  of  women  in  indus- 
try. Many  of  them  are  poor  and  without  education, 
and,  what  is  most  significant,  there  is  no  effective 
way  by  which  they  may  utter  their  protest  against 
economic  wrongs.    Without  continuing  further,  there 


IP 

I 


1 
I 


i 


i_'(S     Tiiic  s<ic  i.\L  ioi:ai.s  (jf  Tin:  i.okd's  1'Kavi;[< 

is  a  great  field  for  the  Christian  in  poHtics— the 
crystallization  of  the  teaching  of  Jesus  into  ade(|uate 
legislation. 

Any  social  system  that  grinds  the  faces  of  the 
poor,  to  use  a  phrase  from  Isaiah,  and  results  in 
untold  wealth  and  wasteful  luxury  on  the  one  hand, 
and  squalid,  hopeless  misery  on  the  other,  is  surely 
incons.stent  with  the  ideals  of  Jesus  as  set  fort  in 
the  Lord's  Prayer.  It  is  therefore  the  duty  of  the 
Christian  to  labor  for  the  abolition  of  this  ancient 
evil  which  is  the  root  of  so  many  other  evils.  If 
in  a  spirit  of  moral  indifference  he  turns  a  deaf  ear 
to  all  this  suffering  which  si)rings  from  poverty,  how 
can  he  pray  widiout  mockery,  "Our  Father:  Give 
us  this  day  our  daily  bread  "  ? 


It 


XI 


THE  SOCIAL  IDEAL  OF  FURGIX'EXESS 

"(Anb  forgi&c  us  our  hebts,  aa  luc  also  I|a68  forgi&cn  our 
befators  " 

Jesus  couples  with  the  cry  for  bread  a  prayer  for 
forj^iveness.  Man  is  something  more  than  an  in- 
carnate appetite.  He  must  eat  to  live,  but  he  by 
no  means  lives  to  eat.  I  le  feels  the  sovereignty  of 
conscience,  the  yearning  after  a  life  that  is  not  con- 
nected with  the  material.  Satisfy  his  bodily  hunger, 
and  there  springs  up  a  hungci  after  righteousness, 
a  longing  after  purity,  a  passion  for  the  divine.  He 
is  conscious  of  conflicting  ideals  in  his  life.  Be- 
tween the  ideal  of  what  he  would  like  to  be,  and 
indeed  of  what  he  knows  he  ought  to  be,  and  the 
practical  reality  of  what  he  is,  there  seems  often 
to  be  a  great  gidf  fixed.  The  sense  of  sin  and  the 
need  of  forgiveness  are  as  real  as  any  hunger  which 
has  its  seat  in  the  Ixjdy ;  and  hence  when  he  prays, 
"  r.ivc  us  this  day  our  daily  bread,"  he  finds  it  the 
most  natural  thing  in  the  world  to  add.  "  and  for- 
give us  our  debts,  as  we  also  have  forgiven  our 
debtors";  for  satisfaction  waits  till  sense  of  right- 
ness  in  personal  relations  is  established. 

129 


K^^ 


1  l.E  SOCIAL  lUliALS  OF  THE  LoKu's  I'KAVliR 


1i 


It,  i 


Our  Debts 

The  word  "  debts  "  as  used  in  the  text  carries 
with  it  the  idea  of  unfulfilled  or  violated  moral  ob- 
ligations. It  is  that  which  we  are  morally  bound  to 
give  to  the  heavenly  Father  in  return  for  his  love 
and  goodness  to  us.  Debts  are  duties  owed  not  only 
to  God,  but  to  our  fellow  men  as  well. 


To  Our  Fcllozi'  Men 

We  are  all  in  debt.  There  is  not  a  living  man 
who  can  justly  say,  "  I  owe  no  man  anything." 
Paradoxical  though  it  may  appear,  the  more  we 
}>ossess  the  more  we  owe.  The  tramp  shivering  in 
his  rags  on  the  street  corner  is  in  debt,  but  his  debt 
cannot  be  compared  to  the  debt  of  the  man  who 
lives  in  a  palatial  home  and  enjoys  all  the  luxuries 
which  wealth  commands.  Ten  thousand  people 
laljor  every  week  lo  make  him  comfortable.  He  is 
in  debt  to  the  miners  who  sweat  in  the  coal-mine  to 
jirovide  the  fuel  which  heats  his  house  and  cooks  his 
food,  to  the  men  and  women  at  home  and  abroad 
who  grow  and  prepare  and  transport  the  food  which 
nourishes  his  body,  to  the  inventors  and  artisans 
who  made  the  dishes  from  which  he  eats,  the  lights 
which  illuminate  his  home,  the  bed  u]X)n  which  he 
sleeps,  and  the  clothes  which  protect  him  from  wind 
and  rain,  from  winter's  snow  and  sum.mer's  sun. 

He  is  in  debt  to  tlie  dead  as  well  as  to  the  living, 
to  the  martyrs,  patriots,  and  reformers,  who  fought 


I  111-:  stH  lAi.  iDi.Ai,  (II-  roK<;i\  i.m;s.s 


'3' 


and  bled  an  died  that  he  might  have  civil  and  re- 
ligious liberty  and  live  in  a  social  order  which  offers 
protection  to  him  and  to  his  family  and  property 
from  the  strong  hand  of  the  ruthless.  He  is  in 
debt  to  the  immortal  spirits  of  the  centuries,  to 
Plato  and  to  Homer,  to  Shakespeare  and  to  (ioethe, 
to  painters  and  poets,  to  nnisicians  and  writers,  to 
scientists  and  philosophers,  to  all  the  gifted  com- 
pany of  the  immortals,  who  have  made  life  so  rich 
and  beautiful  and  wonderful.  In  debt?  Why,  he  is 
so  hopelessly  involved  that  even  if  lie  gave  all  his 
money  and  goods  and  service  he  would  not  be  able 
to  discharge  his  obligations  to  tne  dead  and  to  the 
livincr. 


I 


n 


To  God 

We  are  all  in  debt  to  God.  In  a  very  real  sense 
every  good  and  every  jKrfect  gift  comes  from  him. 
Our  indebtedness  to  the  l*"ather  of  mercies  is  often 
ignored  or  denied  througli  a  failure  in  trac-ng  our 
blessings  from  a  secondary  to  the  first  great  cause. 
We  seem  often  to  be  blind  to  the  fact  that : 

Back  of  the  loaf  is  die  snowy  flour, 

And  back  of  the  flour  the  mill. 
And  back  of  the  mill  is  the  wheat  and  the  shower 

And  the  sun  and  the  Father's  will. 

We  owe  a  debt  to  God  and  to  our  fcllov/  men,  to 
the  dead  and  to  the  living ;  and  since  our  assets  are 
not  sufficient  to  liciuitlate  our  oblifiations.   we  can 


!<r^}ji  J^^ 


ill 


132      Tilt;  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD  S  I'KAYER 

only  cry,  "  Forgive  us  our  debts.''  Jesus  made  a 
most  important  contribution  to  the  religious  life  of 
the  world  in  the  good  news  that  God  as  a  loving 
Father  is  ready  to  blot  out  alJ  our  debts  from  the 
book  of  his  remembrance  and  remove  them  as  far  as 
the  east  is  from  the  west,  when  witli  penitent  hearts 
we  come  seeking  forgiveness. 


If:  f 


'*  I 


h  '■ 


The  Social  Condition  of  Divine  Forgiveness 

But  there  is  a  social  condition  even  to  divine  for- 
giveness. We  are  to  pray :  "  Forgive  us  our  debts, 
as  we  also  have  forgiven  our  debtors."  The  sig- 
nificant word  of  the  petition  is  the  little  word  "  as." 
We  ask  the  heavenly  Father  to  mete  out  to  us  tlie 
same  kind  of  forgiveness  that  we  measure  out  to 
others.  Jesus  put  it  ver>'  clearly:  "For  if  ye  for- 
give men  their  trespasses,  your  heavenly  Father  will 
also  forgive  you.  But  if  ye  forgive  not  men  their 
trespasses,  neither  will  your  heavenly  Father  for- 
give your  trespasses"  (Matt.  6  :  i4f.). 

The  Forgiving  Spirit 

How  much  stress  Jesus  laid  upon  cultivating  a 
forgiving  spirit  is  revealed  in  a  little  incident  re- 
corded by  Mattliew.  He  tells  us  that  on  one  occa- 
sion Peter  came  to  Jesus  with  the  question :  "  Lord, 
how  oft  shall  m\'  l)rolher  sin  against  me  and  I  for- 
give him.''  until  seven  times?"  And  Jesus  replied: 
"  I  say  not  unto  thee,  until  seven  times :  but  until 


^MriS&^L^ilS^^^^^J^i. 


■j^r     ^  "* 


TliK   SOCIAL    IDEAL   OF    FOKf.IVEXLSS 


133 


seventy  times  seven"  (Matt.  18  :  21  f.).  In  other 
words,  there  is  to  be  no  Hmit  to  forgiveness.  Then 
Jesus  illustrates  and  enforces  the  law  of  forgive- 
ness by  a  parable.  (Matt.  18  :  23-34.)  Our  Lord 
comments  upon  this  parable  after  this  fashion :  "  So 
also  shall  my  heavenly  Father  do  unto  you,  if  ye 
forgive  not  every  one  his  brother  from  your  heart." 

Its  Far-reaching  Consequences 

This  petition  of  Jesus  ?t:ikes  at  the  very  root  of 
all  that  is  selfish  and  hateful  and  revengeful.  It 
transfers  forgiveness  from  an  intellectual  and  theo- 
retical realm  into  the  market-place,  where  men 
mingle  in  social  relations.  It  ethicizes  divine  for- 
giveness by  creating  as  an  indispensable  condition 
of  receiving  it,  not  the  efficacy  of  sacraments  nor 
any  confessional  statement,  but  a  willingness  to  ex- 
tend to  others  the  same  kind  of  forgiveness  be- 
stowed upon  us  by  the  Father  in  heaven.  The  way- 
faring man — I  suppose  he  is  to  be  identified  with 
tlie  individual  whom  we  call  in  modern  times  the 
man  of  the  street — sees  the  essential  righteousness 
of  a  forgiveness  which  evokes  the  same  spirit  in 
the  man  upon  whom  it  is  bestowed. 

Here  is  a  prayer  that  never  should  be  lightly 
uttered.  If  our  hearts  are  full  of  hate  or  violence, 
it  may  call  down  upon  us  judgment  instead  of 
mercy.  If  we  have  simply  neglected  our  duties  to- 
ward our  fellow  men.  and  in  a  spirit  of  refined  self- 
ishness have  ignored  the  afflicted  members  of  our 


f 


'  ^?l 


n 


11 


-Ml 

if 


sjss.si'. 


l^^mUi 


m}^^mm 


Mli 


V 


134      Tllii  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORd's  I'RAVKR 

social  order  we  cannot  pray,  "  Forgive  us  our  debts, 
as  we  also  have  forgiven  our  debtors,"  without  in- 
curring the  divine  displeasure.  The  conclusion  of 
the  whole  matter  is  plain.  We  owe  a  debt,  and  the 
only  way  we  can  discharge  that  debt  is  by  helping 
those  of  our  brothers  who  may  be  in  circumstances 
of  distress  and  weakness.  To  adopt  any  policy  ol 
indifference  is  to  show  ourselves  unworthy  of  the 
divine  forgiveness. 


.In  i 


II  i 


f  >.  ft 

iH 
111  if 


The  Social  Ideal  of  Forgiveness  in  Criminology 

The  Delinquents  of  Society 

One  of  the  most  serious  problems  confronting  so- 
ciety is  the  delinquent,  tlie  man  who  has  broken  the 
laws  of  society  and  menaces  the  life  and  property 
of  his  fellows  through  his  predatory  and  violent 
acts.  The  protection  of  the  social  interests  against 
this  large  class  of  people  who  are  socially  antago- 
nistic imposes  a  heavy  rate  upon  the  taxpayers  in 
every  community.  It  may  seem  that  the  petition 
cannot  be  applied  with  fairness  to  the  criminal. 
The  individual  may  forgive  as  God  forgives,  but 
society  must  adopt  some  less  lofty  standard.  The 
criminal  is  to  be  punished,  not  forgiven.  If  he 
has  violated  the  laws  of  the  social  order  in  which  he 
lives  he  must  pay  the  price  even  to  the  uttermost 
farthing. 

This  position  assumes  tliat  a  principle  may  be 
good  for  the  inilividual  and  not  effective  for  so- 


W 


W^^~ 


THE    SOCIAL    IDEAL   OF   FORGIVENESS 


135 


ciety.  It  must  be  admitted,  that  in  the  old  penology 
the  forgiveness  and  rehabilitation  of  the  offender 
were  practically  disregarded,  and  punishment  was 
looked  upon  as  an  end  in  itself ;  but  in  modern  times 
development  of  a  more  humanitarian  spirit  has  led 
to  a  fresh  study  of  the  causes  of  crime,  and  as  a 
result  we  have  what  is  known  as  the  new  penolog}', 
in  which  the  criminal,  not  the  crime,  is  the  important 
factor  to  be  considered.  This  is  what  Saleilles  calls 
"  the  individualization  of  punishment." 

The  Criminal  as  a  Product  of  Social  Forces 

The  Christian  principle  of  forgiveness  is  funda- 
mentally opposed  to  the  theory  which  was  first  ad- 
vocated by  Lombroso,  an  Italian  specialist  in  crim- 
inal anthropology,  that  the  criminal  is  born,  not 
made ;  that  he  conies  into  the  world  a  moral  abnor- 
mality, with  the  natural  inclination  to  break  all 
laws  human  and  divine. 

Without  deprecating  the  power  of  heredity,  it  is 
true  of  most  criminals  that  they  are  the  products 
of  social  forces.  There  are  economic  and  social 
conditions  for  which  society  is  responsible,  which 
breed  criminals  as  filth  breeds  flies.  Take  the  liquor 
traffic  as  an  ilhvstration.  Some  years  ago  fifty  lead- 
ing men  of  this  country  made  an  investigation  of 
the  liquor  traffic  and  published  their  findings  in  a 
book  entitled  "  The  Economic  Aspects  of  the  Liquor 
Traffic."  It  is  their  unbiased  opinion  that  the  liquor 
traffic  contributes  more  or  less  directly  to  one-half 


U 


!1 


^»i. 


^ji^^msSbMm^ 


n 


!■ 


136      Till-:  SOCIAL  IDKALS  OF  Till-:  LOKd's  PRAYER 

of  tile  crime  of  the  L'nited  States.  But  who  is  re- 
sponsible for  this  traftic?  Is  it  not  society,  from 
the  highest  to  the  lowest,  that  must  share  the  guilt? 

C.  J.  Whitby,  M.'  D.,  discussing  the  ciuestion,  Is 
punishment  a  crime?  shows  tliat  one  of  the  very 
commonest  causes  of  all  kinds  uf  crime  is  wliat  he 
calls  industrial  drinking,  lie  writes:  "A  chronic 
drinker  of  this  type  may  pass  into  a  condition  of 
semidelirium,  during  which  he  may  plan  and  carry 
out  some  elaborate  robbery,  or  murder,  of  which  on 
recovery  he  may  have  no  recollection  whatever.  The 
law  will  hold  him  responsible  for  such  a  crime,  but 
that  responsibility,  it  would  seem,  is  at  any  rate 
shared  by  the  employers  who  impose  conditions  of 
work  so  onerous  and  unhealthful  as  to  force  men  ;o 
seek  the  aid  of  stimulants,  and  by  society  as  a  whole 
for  tolerating  such  a  condition  of  affairs."  ^ 

The  liquor  traffic  is  not  the  only  contributing 
cause  of  crime.  Bad  housing,  insufficient  wages, 
and  overwork  create  conditions  which  drive  thou- 
sands every  year  into  the  criminal  classes.  Because 
society  is  responsible  for  these  social  conditions, 
we  cannot  stand  before  the  criminal  like  the  Phar- 
isees before  the  woman  caught  in  adultery,  ex- 
claiming. "  Let  her  be  put  to  death." 

Punishment  for  Punishment's  Sake 

The  Christian  principle  of  forgiveness  combats 
the  old  idea  of  punishment  for  punishment's  sake. 

^  "  ilibbert  Journal,"  July,    ign). 


THE    ^;OCIAL    IDEAL   OF    FORGIVENESS 


n? 


The  [jriiiiit:vc  idea  of  vengeance,  sunitned  up  in 
the  word;,,  "  an  eye  for  an  eye,  a  tooth  for  a  tooth," 
has  survived  in  the  attitude  of  society  toward  its 
enemies,  though  it  was  long  ago  abandoned  in  the 
relation  of  an  individual  to  his  fellows.  The  purpose 
of  punishment  has  been  considered  twofold,  (i)  to 
vindicate  the  majesty  of  the  broken  law,  and  (2)  to 
deter  others  by  fear  from  like  offenses.  It  is  a  de- 
batable question  whether  these  aims  have  l:>een  ac- 
complished, even  when  accompanied  by  the  most 
?overe  penalties.  The  weight  of  evidence  seems  to 
be  in  the  negative.  One  thing  is  certain,  that  this 
theory  of  punishment  has  been  disastrous  to  the  in- 
dividual. H.  S.  Hadley,  writing  of  conditions  in 
Missouri,  declares :  "  The  system  of  punishment  that 
has  been  pursued  in  tJiis  State,  and  until  recently, 
generally  in  this  country,  has  in  a  great  majority  of 
cases  sent  forth  from  prison  those  who  have  been 
confined  there,  broken  physically,  mentally,  ^nd 
morally,  and  worse  enemies  of  society  than  when 
their  punishment  began."  - 

It  would  be  easy  to  multiply  such  testimonies,  both 
from  men  who  have  to  do  with  the  administration 
of  the  law  and  from  tho'^e  who  themselves  have  suf- 
fered the  penalties  of  the  law.  Punislimcnt  for 
punishment's  sake  is  not  only  contradictory  to  the 
Christian  principle  of  forgiveness,  but  inimical  to 
the  best  interests  of  society  as  a  whole. 


'"Americm   Academy  of  Pc'.itiral   and   Social    Science,"   January 
to  June,   19!:,  p.  44. 


K 


£.  J 


II   »;^ 

I.  »•   f.; 


?l  I 


1  j8      TIIK  SOCIAL  IDKAI.S  OF  TlliC  LORDS  i'RAVliK 

RcfurmalioH  and  Rehabilitation  of  the  Criminal 

The  Christian  principle  of  forgiveness  demands 
that  the  primary  aim  of  all  discipline  shall  be  tlie 
reformation  and  rehabilitation  of  the  criminal.  Our 
courts  of  law,  prisons,  and  reformatories  must  be- 
come redemptive  agencies.  The  criminal  is  not  a 
sinner  above  all  others.  He  may  be  an  unfortunate 
victim  of  hard  conditions  of  life.  The  sins  of  his 
parents  may  have  damned  him  before  he  came  into 
the  world.  Some  sudden  passion  of  jealousy,  anger,  , 
or  lust  may  have  swept  him  off  his  feet  and  incited 
him  to  an  act  which  has  brought  him  under  the 
strong  hand  of  the  law. 

In  every  case  punishment  must  be  adapted  to  the 
individual.  The  purpose  of  punishment  is  to  cure. 
Punishment  is  moral  surgery.  If  the  prisoner  is 
an  incorrigible,  he  should  be  kept  under  wise  and 
kindly  restraints  and  never  be  let  loose  to  prey 
upon  society.  Society  must  get  the  vision  of  Jesus 
and  see  in  the  criminal  a  man  made  in  the  likeness 
of  God,  not  all  devil,  but  a  man  with  human  aspira- 
tions and  divine  possibilities.  It  must  bring  to  bear 
upon  that  man  all  influences  and  incentives  which 
may  lead  to  his  regeneration  and  restoration  to  so- 
ciety. 


Specific  Applications  of  the  Social  Ideal  of  Forgiveness 

The  Christian  principle  of  forgiveness  in  its  rela- 
tion to  the  delinquents  of  society  is  at  last  coming 


THE   SOCIAL    IDEAL   OF    l-ORCIVENESS 


139 


into  its  own.  A  new  spirit,  which  is  in  very  truth 
the  spirit  of  Jesu~,  is  finding  practical  expression  in 
the  new  penology. 

Juvenile  Courts 

One  of  the  best  ilhistrations  of  this  new  spirit  is 
the  estabhshment  of  juvenile  courts  in  many  cities. 
The  objects  of  the  juvenile  court  are  declared  to 
be :  ( I )  To  keep  young  offenders  from  the  ordinary 
courts  with  their  hardened  criminals  and  loafers; 
(2)  to  enable  the  judge  to  pay  particular  attention 
to  each  case— an  impossibility  in  the  ordinary  courts 
with  their  volume  of  business;  (3)  to  make  an  in- 
vestigation about  an  offender  beforehand,  so  as  to 
know  his  or  her  antecedents;  (4)  to  make  punish- 
ment educational  rather  than  punitive.    The  splen- 
did results  attained,  wherever  these  courts  have  been 
established,  have  exceeded  the  expectations  of  even 
the  most  sanguine. 

Probation  Officers 

Closely  connected  with  the  juvenile  courts  are  the 
probation  officers,  under  whose  care  and  supervision 
juveniles  and  first  offenders  are  placed  while  under 
probation.  The  one  purpose  of  the  probation  officer 
is  the  salvation  of  the  offender,  for  whom  he  is 
responsible.  The  influence  of  a  strong,  sympathetic, 
pure  personality  upon  a  delinquent  youth  can  hardly 
be  overestimated.  In  a  very  real  sense  the  officer 
becomes  a  savior,  and  his  redemptive  work  is  fre- 


140      Tllli  SOCIAL  lUKALS  OF  THE  LORD  S  PRAYER 

quently  attended  by  the  moral  miracle  of  a  trans- 
formed life. 


m 


h\ 


Pi  I 

Mi  i- 


li 


iM 


The  Indeterminate  Sentence 

The  indeterminate  sentence  is  one  of  the  strongest 
incentives  to  right  living.  It  means  that  the  length 
of  time  for  which  a  prisoner  shall  be  kept  under 
restraint  is  determined,  not  by  the  court,  but  by 
his  good  behavior. 

There  are  other  specific  applications  of  the  Chris- 
tian ideal  of  forgiveness  that  ought  to  be  made. 
The  contract  system  of  prison  labor  should  be 
abolished  in  every  State  of  the  Union.  It  exploits 
the  labor  of  the  prisoner  at  the  expense  of  his 
reformation.  The  families  of  prisoners  should  be- 
come the  wards  of  the  State.  Suitable  provision 
should  be  made  for  their  maintenance  during  the 
imprisonment  of  the  breadwinner.  The  problem  of 
caring  for  the  families  of  the  prisoners  would  prob- 
ably be  solved,  in  part  at  least,  if  the  convicts  were 
permitted  to  earn  fair  wages,  a  portion  of  which 
should  go  to  the  institutions  and  the  remainder 
directly  to  the  family  or  dependents. 

Conclusion 

The  Christian  principle  of  forgiveness  imposes 
upon  us  the  duty  of  taking  Jesus'  attitude  toward 
the  great  debtors  of  society.  Dr.  Samuel  Barrows, 
the  government  expert  on  crime,  addressing  the 


JM;?  S^TTi^V 


^S^' 


i-.v, 


'^^^^i. 


Tllli   SOCIAL    IDEAL   OF    FORGIVKNESS 


141 


National  Prison  Congress,  said:  "We  speak  of 
Howard,  Livingston,  Beccaria,  and  others  as  great 
penologists  who  have  profoundly  influenced  modern 
life,  but  the  principles  announced  and  the  methods 
introduced  by  Jesus  seem  to  me  to  stamp  him  as 
the  greatest  penologist  of  any  age.  He  has  needed 
to  wait,  however,  nearly  twenty  centuries  to  find 
his  principles  and  methods  recognized  in  modern 
laws  and  modern  penology." 

Jesus'  doctrine  of  love  and  forgiveness  is  yet  to 
find  many  new  expressions  in  our  treatment  of 
those  who  have  broken  the  laws  of  society,  and  have 
incurred  a  debt  which  they  are  not  able  to  pay. 


',;^>^ 


XII 


OUR  SOCIAL  RESPONSIBILITY 


I  . 


n 


f 

I     I. 

-  * 


"  ^Ceab  UB  mrt  into  Uxttftntion  " 

The  word  "temptation"  is  used  in  different 
senses  in  the  Scriptures.  It  may  mean  simply  a 
trial,  an  experiment,  a  proving.  It  may  also  mean 
an  enticement  to  sin.  According  to  Thayer,  the 
great  authority  on  New  Testament  Greek,  the  word, 
as  used  in  the  verse  we  are  to  consitlcr,  means  a 
condition  of  things,  or  a  mental  state,  by  which  we 
are  enticed  to  sin  or  to  a  lapse  from  faith  and 
holiness. 


\l\ 


Temptation  and  Environment 

Temptation  a  Fact  of  Life 

Temptation  is  a  great  fact  of  life.  No  man  ever 
lived  a  life  exempt  from  temptation.  It  is  a  part 
of  the  common  lot.  Even  our  Lord  did  not  escape 
the  forty  days'  temptation  in  the  wilderness.  It  is 
true  that  temptation  is  unequally  distributed.  There 
are  individuals  who  seem  instinctively  to  love  the 
good  and  hate  the  evil.  Their  characters  are  placid, 
and  never  become  the  prey  of  evil  passions.  On 
142 


■^'v'S;>ir'' 


.  t--    -.,-,—  .- 


,:!^m^(wm^:is^im^7M£:*^:^A  ii^^^-, 


OUR   SOCIAL    KESI'ONSiniLlI  V 


143 


the  other  hand,  there  are  stormy  natures  which 
must  battle  continually  against  the  force  of  evil. 
Some  people  are  sheltered  from  temptation.  They 
live  in  some  gracious,  kindly  environment  which 
makes  for  righteousness.  There  are  others  who  are 
surrounded  continually  by  associations  and  influ- 
ences hostile  to  virtue.  Cut  whatever  our  condi- 
tion in  life,  there  is  not  one  of  us  so  immune  from 
the  power  of  evil  as  to  find  it  no  longer  necessary  to 
pray,  "  Lead  us  not  into  temptation." 

Character  and  Environment 

While  it  is  true  that  there  are  many  great  evils 
which  have  only  a  very  indirect  connection  with 
environment,  it  remains  an  undisputed  fact  that 
character  is  highly  susceptible  to  either  a  good  or  a 
bad  environment.  Much  has  been  said  and  writ- 
ten on  heredity  as  a  factor  in  the  formation  of  char- 
acter, but  heredity  is  but  a  feeble  influence  as 
compared  with  the  power  of  environment.  The  all- 
conquering  influence  of  surroundings  has  been  ex- 
pressed in  a  very  striking  way  by  Max  Nordeau: 
"  Marry  Hercules  with  Juno,  and  Apollo  with 
Venus,  and  put  them  in  the  slums.  Their  children 
will  be  stunted  in  growth,  rickety,  and  consump- 
tive. On  the  other  hand,  take  the  miserable  slum- 
dweller  out  of  his  noxious  surroundings.  House, 
feed,  clothe  them.  Give  them  plenty  of  light,  air, 
leisure;  and  their  grandchildren,  perhaps  already 
their  children,  will  reproduce  the  type  of  the  fine 


» » 


_L 


W^i?^ 


f  ; 


144       1  HE  SOCIAL  IDLALS  OK  Till.  LOKd's  I'KAVER 

tall  Saxons  and  Danes  of  whom  we  are  the  off- 
spring." 

The  iK)tent  influence  of  environment  in  shaping 
the  physical,  mental,  and  moral  qnalities  of  the  in- 
<lividual  is  a  powerful  appeal  to  the  man  who  be- 
lieves m  the  kingdom  of  God  on  earth.  Heredity  as 
a  factor  in  determining  character  makes  for  pessi- 
mism and  inaction,  for  there  is  no  process  by  which 
we  can  change  our  ancestors;  but  environment 
floods  the  soul  with  <»i)tiiniini.  and  summons  us  to 
crusades  against  all  conditions  which  create  human 
failure  and  su Bering. 


h  *  I- 


In 


The  Home  the  Fundamental  Factor  of  Environment 

The  earliest  and  most  fundamental  factor  of  en- 
vironment is  the  liome  This  institution  has  a  his- 
tory. Older  than  the  nation,  older  than  the  tribe,  it 
goes  back  to  the  beginning  of  things,  even  to  the 
first  man  and  the  first  woman  who  made  for  them- 
selves a  shelter  from  the  tempest,  a  place  of  refuge 
from  the  wild  beast.  The  home  is  the  most  potent 
agency  in  determining  character.  The  ideals  of  the 
home  become  the  ideals  of  the  child. 

The  Protection  of  the  Home 

Statistics  gathered  from  various  reformatories 
emphasize  the  fact  that  it  is  from  squalid,  over- 
crowded, unhappy  homes  that  the  great  army  of  de- 
linquents is  recruited.     The  housing  problem  has 


OUK   SOCIAL    RLSPONSIIULITY 


145 


been  called  the  problem  c£  our  civilization.  Since 
it  is  the  tundamental  and  vital  factor  in  influencing 
the  liv^s  of  tliose  who  are  to  be  our  future  citizens, 
it  is  more  important  that  the  home  should  be  pro- 
tected from  evil  influences  than  that  we  shonld  have 
an  efficient  government  and  a  splendid  educational 
e(|uipment.  A  system  of  reform  that  does  not  begin 
with  the  home  will  not  make  any  very  important 
contribution  to  human  well-bein- 


'■i- 


The  Undermining  of  the  Home 

The  tremendous  growth  of  our  cities  during  the 
l)ast  century  has  brought  a  real  peril  to  the  home. 
In  Great  Britain  the  housing  problem  has  become 
so  acute  that  it  has  been  called  "  the  empire  heart- 
disease."  There  is  not  a  city  of  the  first  class,  and 
few  of  the  second  class,  in  the  United  States  in 
which  the  problem  is  not  serious  and  menacing. 

The  huddling  of  families  in  dark,  overcrowded, 
unsanitary  tenements  inevitably  leads  to  great  phys- 
ical and  moral  evils.  The  death-rate  immediately 
goes  up.  The  mortality  of  little  children  is  fright- 
ful. Tuberculosis,  which  loves  darkness  rather  than 
light,  slays  its  victims  by  the  thousands.  Those  who 
survive  are  apt  to  grow  up  undersized,  anemic,  and 
handicapped  by  their  physical  degeneracy;  unfitted 
not  only  for  the  economic  struggle,  but  also  for  the 
f. mot  ions  of  parenthood.  It  breaks  down  the  home 
life.  There  can  be  no  real  home  life  where  privacy 
is  difficult  if  not  impossible.     The  children,  by  the 


I4O      THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD's  PRAVEK 


til 


\i 


1 


very  nature  of  the  conditions  under  which  they  live, 
are  thrust  into  contact  with  the  vicious  elements  of 
society.  The  report  on  tenement  conditions  in  Chi- 
cago says:  "  It  was  gathered  that  immortahty,  per- 
verted sexuaHty,  drunkenness,  pauperism,  and  many 
forms  of  debauchery  were  caused,  in  some  instances, 
in  others  abetted,  by  the  indecent  overcrowding 
which  existed."  ^ 

The  Problem  Can  Be  Solved 

Dr.  Albert  Shaw,  writing  on  municipal  govern- 
ment in  Great  Britain,  has  expressed  his  conviction 
that  the  abolition  of  the  slums  and  the  destruction 
of  their  virus  are  as  feasible  as  the  drainage  oi  a 
swamp  and  the  total  dissipation  of  its  miasmas. 
Much  has  already  been  accomplished.  The  greed 
of  certain  landlords,  who  have  shown  such  a  callous 
indifference  to  the  conditions  under  which  their 
tenants  lived  so  long  as  the  property  was  financially 
remunerative,  has  been  met  with  important  tene- 
ment-house legislation,  repeatedly  improved  and 
amended,  and  enforced  by  a  tenement-house  depart- 
ment. Private  philanthropy  lias  erected  model  tene- 
ments, and  has  proved  that  the  facilities  for  a  decent 
home  life  can  be  afiforded  at  a  rental  within  the 
reach  of  all,  and  that  will  pay  a  fair  interest  on  the 
investment.  But  so  great  is  the  power  of  commer- 
cial greed  that  ways  of  evading  the  best  legislation 


>  Quoted  in    "  The   Hope   of   Democracy,"   Chap.    X,    Frederick   C, 
Ilowc. 


HP 


'•.V,v.; 


OUR   SOCIAL   RESPOXSIBILITV 


147 


and  of  preventing  the  passing  of  new  laws  for  the 
protection  of  tlie  we-.k  and  helpless  can  easily  be 
found  by  the  unscrupulous,  unless  there  is  opposed 
the  strong  sentiment  of  those  who  realize  that  the 
home  is  the  fundamental  factor  of  environment,  and 
that  anything  that  breaks  down  the  home  breaks 
down  our  civilization. 

The  Economic  Order  as  a  Factor  of  Environment 

A  second  important  factor  of  environment  is  the 
economic  order,  and  by  the  economic  order  is  meant 
the  world  of  commerce  and  industry,  where  men 
produce  and  exchange,  buy  and  sell  'and  transport 
the  commodities  of  life.  Is  this  order  Christian? 
Does  it  make  for  fraternity?  Does  it  tempt  men  to 
unrighteous  acts,  or  is  it  a  field  for  loving  service? 
In  previous  chapters  the  writer  has  dealt  with  these 
que-Mons  from  many  different  points  of  view,  but 
in  the  present  chapter  he  will  confine  himself  to 
two  important  problems,  namely,  child  labor  and 
women  in  industry,  and  show  the  relations  of  these 
two  things  to  the  petition,  "  Lead  us  not  into  tempta- 
tion." ' 

Child  Labor 

According  to  the  United  States  census  returns  of 
1910,  there  are  1.990,225  children  from  ten  to  fifteen 
years  of  age.  out  of  a  population  of  10,828.365,  en- 
gaged in  gainful  occupations,  or  18.4  per  cent  of  the 


^S^-^^; 


148      THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD's  PRAYER 


Pi- 


rn 


whole  population.  Of  this  number  of  little  wage- 
earners,  895,976  are  children  from  ten  to  thirteen 
years  of  age.  Notwithstanding  the  growing  senti- 
ment against  the  evils  of  child  labor,  and  legislation 
for  the  protection  of  children  passed  by  many  States, 
the  census  of  1910  actually  shows  a  larger  percent- 
age of  children  engaged  for  wages  than  the  census 
of  1900.- 

These  figures  from  the  census  returns  are  most 
appalling  and  depressing.  Every  morning  an  army 
of  nearly  two  million  children  marches  to  the  fields, 
the  mines,  the  mills,  and  the  shops  to  work  for 
wages,  and  almost  every  second  child  in  that  great 
army  is  from  ten  to  thirteen  years  of  age.  That 
such  a  condition  of  things  should  exist  in  a  rich, 
powerful  country  like  the  United  States  seems  a 
serious  reflection  upon  our  Christian  civilization. 

The  evil  effects  of  child  labor  upon  the  body  and 
mind  are  so  generally  recognized  by  all  who  have 
given  any  thought  to  the  subject,  that  they  may 
be  dismissed  with  but  a  passing  reference.  ChilO 
labor  stunts  both  body  and  mind.  It  deprives  the 
child  of  the  play  which  is  so  necessary  for  the 
growth  of  the  body  and  the  development  of  the 
mind.  The  factory  child  with  the  Ii»ok-luster  eye, 
the  pale  face,  the  emaciated  body,  the  harsh  voice, 
unable  often  either  to  read  or  write,  is  an  exhibit 
that  ought  to  shame  us  into  the  most  aggressive 


-  Compiled  from  Tables  28  and  26  of  the  Thirteenth  Census  of  the 
United  States,  Vol.  IV. 


OUR    SOCIAL    RKSPOXSllilLITY 


149 


action  against  this  evil  which  has  been  justly  called  a 
menace  to  civilization. 

While  the  physical  and  mental  eflfects  are  bad, 
the  moral  effects  are  worse.     That  factory  life  is 
detrimental  to  the  morals  of  boys  and  girls  is  the 
testimony  of  investigators  who  speak  from  wide  and 
intimate  knowledge.     Immature  children  cannot  be 
subjected  to  the  promiscuous  associations  of  factory 
life  without  suffering  moral  and  spiritual  degen- 
eracy.    It  is,  however,  in  the  street  trades  and 
public  places  that  the  most  awful  eft'ects  of  child 
labor  are   evident.     The  newsboy   and  the   night 
messenger-boy,  especially  in  the  large  centers,  are  in 
constant  danger  of  moral  ruin.    The  statistics  from 
certain  reformatories  are  startling.     Out  of   336 
boys  in  the  Lyman  School,  no  were  former  ped- 
lers  on  the  streets,  160  had  been  newsboys,  -jz  had 
been  bootblacks,  and  56  had  been  messengers.     In 
the    Parental    School,    another    Massachusetts    re- 
formatory, out  of  112  boys,  89  had  been  newsboys, 
52  pedlers,  22  bootblacks,  and  9  messengers;  if 
the  total  thus  reckoned  seems  larger  than  the  num- 
ber of  boys  in  the  reformatory,  it  is  because  some 
of  the  boys  had  engaged  in  more  than  one  occupa- 
tion.' 

Women  in  Industry 

According  to  the  United  States  census  returns  of 
1910,  there  are  8,075,772  females  of  ten  years  and 

""Uniform  Child  Labor  Laws,"   191 1,  p.   105. 


ff 


150      THE  SOCIAL  IDI-ALS  OF  TlIK  I.OKD's  PRAYER 


U\ 


t 

irJ 


1/  ^ 


over  engaged  in  gainful  occupations.  Nearly  one 
woman  in  four  is  a  wage-earner.  There  was  a 
marked  increase  from  1900  to  19 10  in  the  proportion 
of  all  females  ten  years  and  over  engaged  for  wages, 
the  respective  percentages  being  18.8  and  2.^.4.-*  Of 
these  working  women,  almost  a  third  are  young  per- 
sons under  twenty  years  of  age. 

Women  have  always  worked,  but  woman  as  a 
V  age-earner  is  a  new  factor  in  history.  Tower- 
machinery  has  taken  the  woman  from  the  home, 
where  she  formerly  made  her  contribution  of  labor, 
to  the  factory  and  the  shop.  As  the  census  returns 
show,  women  are  leaving  the  home  in  increasing 
numbers  to  !)ecome  wage-earners.  The  introduction 
of  women  into  industry  has  brought  problems,  polit- 
cal,  economic,  social,  and  moral,  the  seriousness 
of  which  has  not  yet  begun  to  dawn  upon  us. 

Our  social  system  does  not  consider  the  woman 
wage-earner  as  economically  independent.  Because 
she  is  a  woman  worker,  in  many  instances  she  is 
paid  wages  which  are  not  sufficient  for  even  a  bare 
existence.  From  surveys  conducted  by  the  Con- 
sumers League  and  other  organizations,  it  appears 
thac  the  average  wage  of  women  workers  in  many 
cities  of  our  country  is  below  the  standard  that  is 
called  a  living  wage.  Her  wages  are  regarded  as 
supplementary.  If  she  be  a  member  of  a  family 
group,  the  males  of  that  family  are  expected  to  con- 


,.*,CompiIed  from  the  Thirteentli  Censi's  of  the  United  States,  loio 
\  ol.   I\  ,  p.    :;0.  '     f     > 


Ht^M^ 


OlUi    SOCIAL    KESI'ONSllilLITY 


r  ;i 


tribute  sonieihing  for  her  support.     Jf  she  be  com- 
pelled to  depend  entirely  upon  her  own  resources 
there  are  other  males  who  are  ready  to  supply  the 
dcfiaency  at  a  certain  price.    In  a  report,  issued  by 
the  llhnois  Vice  Commission  before  the  State  Legis- 
lature, of  an  investigation  that  began  in  August, 
1913.  and  has  just  l)een  concluded,  of  conditions 
existing  in  Chicago,  Springfield,  Peoria,  Alton,  and 
other  Illinois  cities,  it  is  stated :  "  Thousands  of  girls 
are  driven  into  prostitution  because  of  sheer  in- 
ability to  keep  body  and  soul  together  on  the  low 
wages  received  by  them."    The  figlit  for  right  living 
lias  been  made  too  hard  for  them. 

The  Social  Prayer  and  Environment 

The  family 

It  is  the  ambition  of  every  true  parent  to  sur- 
round his  children  with  such  influences  as  will  make 
for  the  highest  and  strongest  character.    He  is  not 
content  with  simply  praying  that  they  may  be  de- 
livered from  the  temptations  of  life.    Me  knows  that 
eternal  vigilance  is  the  price  of  safety.     That  they 
may  be  equipped  for  the  stern  battles  of  life  he 
seeks  to  build  up  a  strong  mind  in  a  strong  body. 
This  involves  years  of  preparation  in  the  public 
scliools,    adequate    opportunities     for    recreation 
nourishing  food,  and  warm  clothing.    Realizing  the 
peril  of  evil  associates,  he  supervises  their  amuse- 
ments,  and  guards   thorn    from   vicious  associates 


I  52      Till-.  .SOCIAL  TDKALS  OF  THE  LORD's  PRAYF.R 


U 


:  1 


lu  the  foniiat'vc,  plastic  jears  of  youth  he  seeks  to 
inculcate  lessons  of  truth,  purity,  and  honesty. 

But  when  a  man  prays,  "  Lead  us  not  into  tempta- 
tion," his  vision  must  sweep  a  wider  horizon  than 
tlie  confines  of  his  own  family.  It  includes  the 
family  of  his  neighbor,  the  i)eople  of  the  commu- 
nity in  which  he  lives.  He  is  bound  by  the  prin- 
ciples of  that  petition  to  work  for  a  social  order 
that  will  not  put  stumbling-blocks  in  the  way  of  even 
the  humblest  member  of  society.  The  prayer  means 
that  the  interest  of  each  is  the  concern  of  all.  It 
summons  us  to  a  battle  against  all  the  factors  of  en- 
vironment which  impair  character  and  hinder  the 
development  of  strong,  noble  manhood  and  woman- 
hood. 

The  Family  Sense  Guarding  the  Larger  Family 

The  Christian  man  who  is  interested  in  the  wel- 
fare of  his  own  children,  who  sees  to  it  that  they 
have  opportunities  for  healthful  recreations,  that 
they  are  not  forced  into  the  grim  struggle  for  bread 
while  they  are  immature  in  body  and  mind,  must 
feel  his  responsibility  for  his  neighbor's  children 
who  are  being  broken  in  body,  in  mind,  and  in 
morals.  Nearly  two  million  children  are  being 
sacrificed  to  the  Moloch  of  commercial  and  indus- 
trial greed.  It  was  reported  in  the  press  that  when 
the  torpedo  tore  through  the  bowels  of  the  Lusitania, 
and  two  thousand  men,  women,  and  children  were 
brought  face  to  face  with  death,  Alfred  G.  Vander- 


I  ^ 


OUR    SOCIAL    RESPOXSTBILITY  153 

bilt  said  to  his  valet.  "  Come,  and  let  us  save  the 
kiddies.  i  o  save  the  children  from  the  evils  of 
enervating  labor  is  the  trumpet-call  that  must  be 
answered  by  all  who  believe  that  the  petition  "  Lead 
us  not  mto  ten.ptation  "  has  social  significance. 

Ihat  so  many  girls  and   women  are   living  on 

wages  so  insufficient  as  to  expose  them  continually 

o  the  blandishments  of  men  who  would  ruin  their 

T  rMT""^  '•''''■  '°"^^^  '^  '''''^y  «f  interest  to 
all  who  believe  that  the  social  pra>er  means  that 

we  must  work  for  an  environment  ^^hicll  will  not 
put  too  great  a  strain  upon  the  virtue  of  men  and 
women     It  is  our  plain  duty  to  warn  employers  of 
Ubor  that  they  have  no  right  to  call  themselves 
Christian,  thai  they  have  no  right  to  pray,  "  Lead  us 
not  into  temptation,"  if  they  are  putting  tempta- 
tion in  the  way  of  their  women  employees  by  forcing 
them  to  work  for  a  wage  that  must  be  supplemented 
in  some  way  if  these  workers  are  to  enjoy  even  the 
bare  necessities  of  life.    The  bargain-hunting  public 
with  Its  craze  for  cheap  things  must  be  made  to 
sliare  the  responsibility.     Where  cheap  goods  are 
produced,  life  is  cheap,  and  the  soul-destroying  labor 
of   httle  children  and   the  virtue  of  women  are 
thrown  in  to  make  a  bargain  holiday.     The  Con- 
sumers League  has  done  splendid  service  in  edu- 
cating the  public  conscience,  by  promulgating  the 
"  ^tandards  of  a  fair  house."  and  by  printing  in  the 
white  hst     the  stores  which  approach  nearest  the 
standards  of  the  league. 

L 


<»>f'--r-ief*:./.X2aaBi'\2*'isienK-^wwaftr-Mw 


154       TIK  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  THE  LORD's  PRAYER 


!       i 


i 


Conclusion 

In  this  petition  of  the  Lord's  Prayer  our  social 
responsibility  is  directly  enforced.  It  is  therefore 
not  a  prayer  that  should  lightly  fall  from  our  lips. 
To  utter  that  petition,  and  then  go  out  and  engage 
in  some  business  which  is  putting  temptation  in  the 
way  of  the  weak,  is  surely  to  make  us  members  of 
that  class  to  which  our  Lord  addressed  the  solemn 
warning :  "  It  is  impossible  but  that  occasions  of 
stumbling  should  come ;  but  woe  unto  him  through 
whom  they  come !  It  were  well  for  him  if  a  mill- 
stone were  hanged  about  his  neck,  and  he  were 
thrown  into  the  sea,  rather  than  that  he  should  cause 
one  of  these  little  ones  to  stumble  "  (Luke  17  :  if.). 
To  pray,  "  Lead  us  not  into  temptation,"  and  simply 
shirk  our  responsibilities  to  the  sorely  tempted  mem- 
bers of  our  social  order,  is  to  make  it  manifest  that 
we  are  kindred  spirits  with  that  group  of  people 
who  are  to  stand  on  the  left  side  in  the  coming 
judgment,  and  receive  condemnation  because  of 
their  sin  of  inaction :  "  Verily  I  say  unto  you.  In- 
asmuch  as  ye  did  it  not  unto  one  of  these  least, 
ye  did  it  not  unto  me"  (Matt.  25  :  45)- 


f:^ 


XIII 

THE  WORLD  SET  FREE 

"  Peli&er  iw  front  ti|e  e&U;  for  Ujute  is  tljc  bmgbotn,  anb 
tife  pofecr,  anft  ti|c  glorg,  forefter,    ^raen  " 

The  prayer  closes  with  a  petition  for  deliverance 
from  evil.  That  it  is  allied  with  the  preceding 
petition  is  clear  from  the  connecting  word,  "  but." 
It  is  fitting  that  it  should  come  at  the  close  of  the 
prayer,  for  it  sums  up  in  one  brief  statement  all 
that  had  been  asked  in  the  preceding  petitions.  The 
name  of  the  Father  will  be  hallowed  on  earth;  the 
kingdom  of  God  will  be  here  in  its  fulness;  hate 
and  strife  and  selfishness  will  give  place  to  love. 
service,  and  sacrifice ;  poverty  will  be  banished  from 
the  earth ;  the  spirit  of  forgiveness  will  rule  in  so- 
cial, political,  and  international  relations ;  the  wrong 
conditions,  which  tempt  men  downward  and  put  ex- 
cessive burdens  on  the  weak,  will  be  done  away ;  all 
the  great  social  and  religious  ideals  of  the  entire 
prayer  will  be  realized  when  the  petition.  "  Deliver 
us  from  the  evil,"  is  answered.  Its  fulfilment 
means — the  world  set  free,  when  "  the  creation  it- 
self also  will  be  delivered  .  .  .  into  the  freedom  of  the 
glory  of  the  children  of  God  " 

155 


i 


'^.'V\^' 


■^f: 


'■'^i^>*-'»L.^ 


!  .4 

,  ? 


III 
I 


f- 1' 


1 1 


I  ? 

t   « 
:  ir 


h\ 


1}  i 


136      nil-  SOCiAL  IDEALS  OF  THK  LOKD's  PRAYER 

Evil  Real  and  Obstinate 

The  Age-long  Problem 

From  the  earliest  times  men  have  been  seeking  to 
solve  the  problem  of  evil.  The  Egyptian  priest 
wrestled  with  it.  The  Chaldean  astrologer,  gazing 
into  the  stars  of  the  midnight  sky,  sought  a  solu- 
tion. Job.  the  ash-heap  philosopher,  was  tortured 
by  its  dark  enigma.  Greek  writers  could  not  keep 
away  from  it.  It  was  the  theme  of  Milton's  "  Para- 
dise Lost."  The  African  witch-doctor,  the  Moham- 
medan with  his  prayer-wheel,  the  mournful  pro- 
cession of  Hindu  pilgrims  wending  their  way  along 
the  sacred  river  Ganges,  are  all  conscious  of  evil, 
and  each  in  his  own  way  is  seeking  deliverance. 

There  are  genial  optimists  who,  unable  to  find  a, 
solution  of  the  problem,  take  the  easy  way  of  de- 
claring that  there  is  no  problem.  Evil  is  non- 
existent. Sin  is  a  delusion.  There  is  error  and 
weakness  and  ignorance,  but  there  is  no  sin.  Forget 
it.  and  it  will  cease  to  trouble  you.  But  evil  is  a 
reality  that  cannot  be  dislo<lged  by  any  intellectual 
sleight-of-hand  performance. 

The  Stitbhoni  Fact 

The  history  of  man  on  the  planet  is  a  history  of 
the  battle  between  good  and  evil.  The  Scriptures 
cover  a  period  of  thousands  of  years,  and  in  them 
the  inner  history  of  man  is  tolo  in  terms  of  a  moral 
sini^gle.     An  old  philosopher  once  said,  "  Happy 


THE    WORLD   SET    IT<Ei: 


157 


is  *he  nation  that  has  no  history."  1  le  meant  by  the 
statement  that  the  history  of  all  nations  has  so  many 
bloody  and  shameful  pages  that  it  would  be  better 
if  the  history  had  never  been  written. 

Evil  is  all  around  us.  Our  newsi)apers,  which 
reflect  the  every-day  life  of  the  people,  are  chronicles 
of  current  iniquity.  They  tell  how  men  defraud  one 
a  lother  in  business;  how  some  group  of  capitalists 
gets  a  corner  on  some  necessity  of  human  life  and 
grows  rich  beyond  the  dreams  of  avarice,  while 
great  masses  of  the  population  fester  in  squalid 
misery;  how  nations  in  their  lust  for  some  large 
place  under  the  sun,  fired  by  a  dream  of  world  em- 
pire, set  the  laws  of  humanity  at  defiance,  and  the 
blood  of  millions  of  people  cries  to  God  for  ven- 
geance; how  men,  letting  loose  the  reins  of  pas- 
sion, murder  and  rob  and  sow  in  their  own  bodies 
the  seeds  of  disease  and  death ;  how  husbands  prove 
unfaithful  to  wives,  and  wives  to  husbands,  and  the 
beautiful  home  life  topples  over  like  a  pack  of  cards. 
Fools  may  flout  at  evil,  and  short-sighted  moral  ama- 
teurs may  deny  its  existence;  but  however  denied, 
explained,  or  ignored,  its  polluting,  paralyzing,  damn- 
ing effects  are  spread  all  over  the  pages  of  history. 


The  Evil  from  Which  We  Are  to  Seek  Deliverance 

Interpretation  of  "  the  evil " 

The  reading  of  the  American  Revised  Version 
suggests  the  devil.    It  is  the  same  word  that  is  used 


^i 


i 


.«*MWI»£r/V- 


-:f4i:M  rgy^ssmt^.'"smv\*^ 


I 


•     5 


«JI 


158      THE  SOCIAL  IDEALS  OF  TUli;  LOKu's  rKAVKK 

in  Christ's  prayer  for  the  preservation  of  those  who 
had  been  given  to  him  by  the  Father :  "  I  pray  not 
that  thou  shouldest  take  them  from  the  world,  but 
that  thou  shouldest  keep  them  from  the  evil  "  (John 
17  :  is).  But  whether  the  evil  is  to  be  regarded  as 
an  active  malignant  spirit,  or  as  a  mere  personifica- 
tion of  the  abstract  principle  of  evil,  it  is  evident  that 
the  term  includes  all  evil. 

Deliverance  by  Prayer 

We  are  to  pray  for  deliverance  from  the  evil; 
from  all  physical  evil  which  afflicts  our  bodies  and 
brings  weakness,  disease,  and  suffering;  from  all 
mental  evil,  as  ignorance,  bigotry,  superstition,  prej- 
udice, which  has  written  so  many  sorry  pages  in 
the  history  of  mankind  upon  the  earth;  from  all 
moral  evil  which  springs  out  of  unholy  lusts  and 
desires,  defiling  and  defeating  the  higher  life  of  the 
soul;  from  all  national  and  social  evil,  as  war, 
poverty,  intemperance,  prostitution,  these  hideous 
shapes  which  take  such  a  fearful  toll  of  human  life, 
and  are  responsible  for  such  wide-spread  suffering 
and  degradation. 

Deliverance  by  'Action 

To  pray  for  deliverance  from  the  many  and  varied 
evils  is  to  recognize  the  divine  call  to  battle  against 
the  enemies  that  are  within  and  without.  To  pray 
and  not  to  work  is  hypocrisy.  The  pronoun  "  us," 
used  in  the  petition,  suggests  that  it  is  a  social 


^.J^^^a^i^ 


Tllli    WORLD   SET    FREE 


159 


prayer  oflere*!  on  behalf  of  all  mankind.  As  siteli, 
it  gives  us  a  vision  of  ihe  whole  earth  emancipaterl 
from  evil,  and  is  a  clarion  call  to  engage  in  a  war  of 
no  surrender  and  no  compromise  against  all  the  evil- 
which  afflict  i;umanity.  The  prayer  is  to  be  trans- 
lated into  redemptive  acts. 


The  Triumph  of  Good  Over  Evil 

It  is  claimed  by  some  that  we  are  living  in  one 
of  the  darkest  nights  in  the  world's  history,  that 
political,  social,  and  moral  conditions  were  never  so 
desperate  as  they  are  at  the  present  time,  that  the 
great  conflict  now  raging  is  but  another  proof  that 
the  whole  world  is  on  the  devil's  toboggan-slide, 
hastening  to  some  final  catastrophe.  If  this  view  of 
the  world  be  correct,  it  is  a  confession  that  Chris- 
tianity is  a  failure,  that  after  nineteen  centuries  the 
gospel  has  made  so  little  impression  upon  society 
that  the  world  is  actually  worse  than  it  was  when 
Jesus  stood  on  the  Mount  of  Olives  with  his  dis- 
ciples and  sent  them  out  to  conquer  the  world  in 
his  name.  It  means  that  there  is  not  sufficient 
dynamic  power  in  the  gospel  to  transform  individuals 
and  to  bring  about  a  better  social  order. 

In  opposition  to  1  cse  weeping  Jeremiahs,  who, 
looking  out  from  the  observatory  of  despair,  report 
the  triumph  of  evl'  over  good  and  prophesy  tlie  near 
advent  of  a  world  cataclysm,  it  is  claimed  that  good 
is  slowly  but  surely  overcoming  evil,  that  the  man 


i6o    THE  SOCIAL  idi:als  of  tiil:  lord's  prayer 


n 


whose  gaze  sweeps  a  wide  horizon  can  see  a  con- 
stant upward  trend. 

Improving  Material  Conditions  of  Life 

It  is  generally  admitted  that  the  past  hundred 
years  have  witnessed  a  marked  improvement  in  the 
material  conditions  of  life.  All  classes  have  bene- 
fited by  the  change.  The  working  man  no  longer 
lives  in  a  hovel,  on  an  unlighted  sewerless  street, 
with  heaps  of  garbage  before  his  door.  He  receives 
higher  wages  for  less  hours  of  labor.  His  power 
of  self-deTvinse  grows.  It  is  recognized  to-day  that 
an  employer  must  l)e  concerned  not  only  over  dam- 
aged machinery,  but  also  over  damaged  men.  In 
all  States  which  make  any  pretension  to  high  social 
ideals  we  have  workmen's  compensation  acts  to 
protvict  men  from  the  risks  incident  to  their  occu- 
pations. 

The  children  of  the  poor,  through  our  system  of 
free  public  schools,  theoretically  at  least,  have  an 
equal  opportunity  with  the  children  of  the  rich.  It 
is  not  merely  the  dream  of  a  visionary  that  another 
century  will  witness  the  abolition  of  poverty,  with 
tlie  many  evils  which  spring  out  of  it,  from  the  face 
of  the  earth.  The  nineteenth  century,  through  its 
labor-saving  machinery,  has  solved  the  problem  of 
production.  The  twentieth  century  is  to  solve  the 
problem  of  a  more  equitable  distribution  of  the 
wealth  created  by  society.  A  vvjrld  without  poverty 
is  not  far  from  us. 


M   '; 


THE   WORLD   SET    FREE 


iCl 


Growing  Recognition  of  the  Sacredness  of  Childhood 

When  machinery  invaded  industr)^  there  was 
heard  along  with  it  the  wail  of  little  toilers.  Chil- 
dren eight  years  old  worked  sixteen  hours  a  day. 
Millions  of  them  were  sacrificed  to  feed  the  god  of 
industry.  But  conditions  to-day,  while  by  no  means 
ideal,  as  has  already  been  pointed  out,  are  stealily 
improving.  In  almost  all  the  States  of  the  Urion 
legislation  has  been  secured  which  has  brought 
about  a  material  reduction  in  the  hours  of  labor  for 
children.  In  many  States  child  labor  has  been  prac- 
tically abolished. 

It  has  been  generally  recognized  by  those  who 
have  been  interested  in  the  movement  for  the  pro- 
tection of  children  that  there  must  be  a  federal 
law  to  deal  with  the  problem.    The  States  which 
recognize  the  sacredness  of  childhood  by  humane 
legislation  are  compelled  to  compete  in  the  open 
market  with  States  that  manufacture  goods  by  child- 
hood labor  and  childhood  wages.    The  nation  alone 
can  abolish  this  great  industrial  wrong.    At  the  time 
of  this  writing  a  great  victory  for  the  principle  of 
federal  control  of  child  labor  has  been  won.    The 
United  States  House  of  Representatives  on  February 
2,  1916,  by  the  overwhelming  majority  of  three  hun- 
dred and  thirty-seven  to  forty-six,  passed  a  bill 
which  forbids  interstate  commerce  in  goodi  made  by 
children  or  with  the  help  of  children  under  fourteen 
years  of  age  if  employed  in  factories,  and  under  six- 


:!«■ 


\b2    Tin;  SOCIAL  idi;.\ls  df  riiii  luku's  pkaylir 

teen  years  of  age  if  employed  in  mines  or  quarries, 
and  under  sixteen  years  of  age,  whether  employed  in 
factories,  mines,  or  !|uarrics,  if  they  are  worked  more 
than  eight  hours  a  day  or  at  night.  The  day  is  nut 
far  distant  when  the  child  as  a  national  asset  of  the 
first  magnitude  will  be  written  in  tlie  legislation 
of  this  country,  and  all  other  countries  of  the  workl. 

An  Ancient  Evil  and  the  Nezu  Conscience 

The  rising  tide  of  public  sentiment  against  Hie 
liquor  traffic  has  put  new  hope  and  courage  into  the 
hearts  of  all  who  believe  in  the  kingdom  of  God  on 
earth.  P'or  the  first  time  in  history  we  have  good 
grounds  for  belie%'ing  tliat  we  are  speedily  to  see 
a  world  set  free  from  this  hoary  evil  which  has 
brought  such  a  curse  upon  humanity. 

The  saloon-keeper  and  the  big  brewer  have  been 
placed  under  the  ban  of  public  opinion.  The  lead- 
ing scientists  of  the  world,  representing  twenty- 
seven  nations,  at  the  World's  Congress  on  Alcohol 
in  London,  1909,  declared :  "  That  alcohol  is  a  poison, 
that  its  use  as  a  beverage  is  destructive  and  de- 
genc  iting  to  the  human  organism,  that  its  effect 
on  the  body  is  depressive,  neurotic,  and  anesthet- 
ic." Life-insurance  companies,  labor-union  officials, 
judges,  and  the  heads  of  transportation  companies 
are  on  record  against  the  liquor  traffic. 

The  liquor  business  is  on  the  defensive  in  every 
country  of  the  world.  The  great  war,  which  has 
forced  the  nations  involved  in  the  struggle  to  con- 


^^'^mmx- 


THE    WORLD   SET    FREE 


163 


serve  their  resources,  has  brought  new  and  stringent 
legislation  against  this  trafic  which  is  responsible 
for  the  waste  of  so  much  money  and  manhood. 
Russia  took  the  advanced  step  of  totally  suppressing 
the  sale  of  all  alcoholic  liquor,  and  David  Lloyd- 
George,  Chancellor  of  the  British  Exchequer,  has 
declared :  "  I->y  that  means  she  has  increased  the 
productivity  of  her  labor  by  sometliing  between 
thirty  and  forty  per  cent.  Sweden,  Finland,  and 
Iceland  have  voted  in  favor  of  the  national  pro- 
hibition of  the  licjuor  traffic.  In  the  United  States 
at  the  beginning  of  1916  there  were  nineteen  States 
under  State-wide  prohibition,  and  other  States  will 
come  in  during  the  >ear.  At  present  more  than  fifty 
per  cent  of  the  American  people  live  under  pro- 
hibition laws,  and  more  than  seventy-five  per  cent 
of  the  area  of  the  country  is  dr^.  A  recital  of 
these  facts  ought  to  quicken  the  faith  and  stimulate 
the  activity  of  all  who  look  for  a  new  earth  and 
who  sometimes  pray  almost  despairingly,  "  Deliver 
us  from  the  evil." 

The  Abolition  of  War 

In  the  presence  of  a  world  conflict,  it  may  seem 
Utopian  to  discuss  such  a  question  as  the  abolition 
of  war.  The  old  dream  of  the  day  when  all  disputes 
among  the  nations  would  be  settled  by  arbitration 
seeiTis  to  be  shattered.  Will  peace  be  followed  by 
feverish  preparation  for  renewed  conflict?  Have 
we  entered  upon  v.  long  era  of  battle  and  Ijloodshed  ? 


l64       11  IF.  SOCIAL  IDI^ALS  OF  THF  LORD's  TRAYFR 


There  are  those  who  answer  these  cjuestions  in  the 
affirmative.  They  are  predicting  that  this  war  will 
breed  other  wars,  that  the  forces  of  hate  and  bitter- 
ness engendered  by  the  present  conflict  will  burst 
forth  in  fresh  carnage  and  desolation. 

On  the  other  side,  it  may  be  said  that  there  never 
was  a  time  when  the  conviction  was  so  strong  that 
war  is  uni^rofitable.  There  never  was  a  time  when 
the  horrors  of  war,  with  its  appalling  waste  of 
human  life  and  treasure,  have  come  so  near  home. 
There  never  was  a  time  when  the  desire  for  peace 
was  so  strong  as  at  the  present  moment.  When  we 
consider  the  fearful  slaughter  in  the  Old  World, 
devastated  cities,  starving  women  and  children,  men 
by  the  thousands  dying  in  agony  upon  battlefields, 
multitudes  broken  in  body  and  mind,  nations  mort- 
gaged for  many  years  by  staggering  war  debts,  peace 
seems  the  most  desirable  thing  that  coidd  come  to  an 
afflicted  world. 

Peace  is  on  the  way.  It  is  being  born  in  the  throes 
of  a  world  tragedy.  No  nation  will  be  permitted  to 
obstruct  the  flaming  desire  for  peace  that  has  been 
intensified  a  thousandfold  by  the  horrors  of  the  con- 
flict now  raging.  The  old  glamor  of  war  is  gone 
forever.  The  common  sense  of  the  world  will  de- 
mand a  more  humane  and  just  method  of  settling 
international  differences.  It  is  the  firm  faith  of  the 
writer  that  as  a  direct  result  of  this  great  war  there 
will  be  organized  among  the  nations  a  league  to 
enforce  peace.     The  nations  for  many  years  ha^e 


T!IF.    WORLD   SET    FREE 


165 


been  preparing  for  war.  The  time  is  near  at  hand 
when  they  shall  prepare  against  war.  We  shall  live 
to  see  the  world  set  free  from  this  great  evil. 

The  Social  Aiuakenimj  of  the  Church 

The  social  awakening  of  the  church  is  bringing 
new  forces  into  action  which  will  surely  bring  about 
the  triumpli  of  good  over  evil.     To-day  the  social 
note  is  being  sounded  in  a  thousand  pulpits.     The 
old  squabbles  over  dogma  and  rituals  are  becoming 
a  thing  of  the  past.    The  test  of  a  church-member 
is  no  longer  his  loyalty  to  a  creed,  but  the  contri- 
bution he  is  making  to  the  welfare  of  society.    The 
finest  minds  in  our  churches  are  coming  back  to  that 
truth  taught  by  Jesus,  that  the  church  is  not  an  end 
in  itself,  but  a  means  of  bringing  in  the  reign  of 
God  in  human  life.     When  the  rank  and  file  of 
the  meml)ership  of  our  churches  adopt  this  concep- 
tion, mighty  things  will  be  brought  to  pass.    On  Sun- 
day the  people  will  gather  in  the  church  buildings, 
not  simply  to  hear  some  obscure  dogma  explained 
and  defended,  not  simply  to  repeat  the  articles  of 
some  ancient  creed  that  has  no  bearing  upon  the 
life  (  f  to-day.  but  to  pray  for  the  coming  of  the 
kingdom,  to  commune  with  the  great  Spirit  who 
is  closer  than  breathing  and  nearer  than  hands  or 
feet,  to  sing  the  glories  of  the  new  Jerusalem  com- 
ing down  out  of  heaven  from  Cud  made  ready  as  a 
bride  adorned  for  her  husband.    The  church  meet- 
ing on  Sunday  will  thus  be  an  inspirational  center  for 


l60      Till-:  SOCIAL  IDRALS  OF  TIIE  LORD's  PRAYKR 


men  and  women  whose  hearts  the  Lord  has  touched, 
and  who  have  caught  the  superb  vision  of  the  king- 
dom of  God  on  earth.  Then  for  six  days,  which 
are  as  truly  sacred  days  as  the  first  day,  men  and 
women  of  all  occupations  will  have  as  their  dominant 
thought,  not  simply  the  making  of  money,  but  the 
extension  of  the  kingdom  of  God  on  earth.  Under 
the  inspiration  of  this  glowing  ideal  the  church  will 
mobilize  its  forces  and  attack  the  great  social  evils 
of  to-day  with  the  same  earnestness  and  self-sacri- 
fice that  it  has  revealed  in  carrying  tlie  gospel  to 
the  dark  corners  of  the  earth. 


The  Victory  of  Faith 

The  Lord's  Prayer  closes  with  the  petition,  "  De- 
liver us  from  the  evil."  Some  ancient  authorities 
add :  "  For  thine  is  the  kingdom,  and  the  power,  and 
the  glory,  forever.  Amen."  While  not  a  part  of  the 
prayer  of  Jesus,  it  is  a  fitting  response  from  the 
man  whose  eye  of  faith  sees  God  standing  within 
the  shadow  keeping  watch  above  his  own. 

We  have  prayed  that  God's  kingdom  may  come, 
his  will  be  done  on  earth,  as  it  is  in  heaven.  We 
have  prayed  for  a  social  order,  in  which  poverty 
with  its  brood  of  evils  shall  he  banished,  and  equal- 
ity of  opportunity  shall  be  within  the  reach  of  all ; 
in  which  hate  and  violence  and  revenge  shall  no 
longer  menace  and  divide  nations  and  classes  and 
individuals;  a  social  order,  in  which  the  things  that 


THE   WORLD  SET    FREE 


107 


drag  men  clown,  and  put  stumbling-blocks  in  tlie  way 
of  virtue,  shall  be  removed. 

We  are  still  a  long  distance  from  that  ideal  so- 
cial and  religious  order.  But  tiie  man  who  believes 
that  there  is  a  Power  not  of  ourselves  which  makes 
for  righteousness,  who  is  convinced  that  in  the  long 
run  goodness  is  irresistible,  who  is  persuaded  that 
the  world  is  gradually  growing  better,  is  not  dis- 
couraged at  the  apparent  slowness  of  the  coming  of 
the  kingdom  in  its  fulness.  Even  in  this  dark  night 
of  war  and  desolation,  when  so  many  voices  are  ut- 
tering their  chants  of  hate,  and  faith  falters,  and 
hope  grows  dim,  he  sees  One  whose  form  is  like 
unto  the  Son  of  man,  and  he  lifts  his  eyes  to  the 
All-father,  with  the  assurance  that  good  must  be  the 
final  goal. 


"  Jlfor  tt\vnt  is  tt(e  faingbom,  mtb  tl;e  pofaet, 
^b  tilt  gbr^,  hfttbev,    ^xtten  " 


^^i-^-i-r; 


'*«*sri^? 


